Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark - Don't Embrace It Either
by Warrior-of-Darkness015
Summary: Kami discovers Bane and he becomes a Ghoul (under different circumstances) but Kami isn't the only one he has to deal with now, as Garuda...the self-proclaimed Dark Ghoul Lord is also even more obsessed with him than Kami is...How will things fare with Garuda having never been successfully sealed away by Kami and holding a bitter grudge? R&R and find out (Dark Titus appears)
1. Chapter 1

**Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark - Don't Embrace It Either**

**We know that Kami had sealed Garuda away in the Slums long before he met Bane or knew of his existence and it worked despite Garuda being far more powerful that he was at the time and the Kurosaki Clan's sealing magic being among the strongest...well, what if the spell failed and Garuda escaped being sealed away...bad, bad news...that's what cause that was the only thing preventing Garuda from ruling the world (this starts a little before Kami first met Bane...seems like he's not the only one that is after the Asakura Clan Hybrid too, but even if Kami is evil, Bane still has a better chance with him than Garuda) and Yang isn't hungry during his reunion with Kami, so he's not taking Bane without a fight**

Kami seems to be using a telepathic net to both issue orders to the people watching this little secluded house as it seems that there are others are en-route to the house as well, no ally to Kami and barely a nuisance to Garuda and to keep an eye out for the G.E.C who are probably aware by now of his or Garuda's Ghoul activities here over the past week alone

Garuda was already watching the house, he could make his presence known and utterly terrify those living there or take the boy before Kami can find him but he chose not to...far too amused with this very interesting human

Garuda stood on a tree watching the house...he grinned sinisterly "Come out, come out little hybrid...let Lord Garuda see those eyes" he didn't need need to be as clairvoyant as he was to know that there was something evil festering in this boy, it would be trouble if anyone but him was to nurture that evil

He saw Yang leave the house suddenly, heading in the direction that he sensed Kami, his hatred for the repugnant Kurosaki burned to the point where he couldn't even keep his magic hidden in his anger but forcibly did so to avoid attention...he didn't want Kami to know what hit him until he already had the boy and was gone, he was about to follow when he saw Bane stick his head out the door, making sure Yang was gone before going after him

Garuda's jaw almost hit the floor at the power nearly rivaling his own coming from a mere human "Hn...I've finally found you, little morsel" he chuckled darkly knowing Bane wasn't a Ghoul but definitely had very strong Ghoul blood in those veins as he wasn't as fast as a Ghoul but still faster than any mere human as Garuda followed him

The boy seemed panicky all of a sudden...did he know Garuda was tailing him?

_'No...' _Garuda thought as Kami came out and met Yang in the woods as Garuda became very slightly feral, having almost lost all the power he'd accumalated through treachery and betrayal in one fell swoop because of this one Ghoul Lord _'I can't allow this power to end up in anyone's hands but mine...__**especially**__ if they're Kami's'_

Garuda left, but someone was listening in...someone who owed their lives to Kami warding Garuda off as well as the boy, Bane soon would as it was Raimundo who appears out of the bushes, calm as a pond and wondering what the hell attracted Garuda, of all people, to this backwater edge of Tokyo

"My my...just as I thought things couldn't get any worse, Garuda shows up" Raimundo says to himself, well acquainted with the self proclaimed Dark Ghoul Lord "I don't think Lord Kami would be too happy to see him, I know I'm not"

He soon follows Garuda, hoping to get to Kami before he does as he places one palm on the ground and closes his eyes for a few seconds "Seismic Sense..." As he sends a trackable amount of his magic into the ground to give him a mental map of the area and where Kami was as well as how far apart Kami was from Garuda and himself as he quickly grabbed his skateboard and took a shortcut with a proud "Gotcha..."

* * *

**Elsewhere, Yang comes face to face with Kami...even though he was trying to avoid doing just that...**

Yang seems aware that Kami is around...as well as some kind of miasma, he swore he felt it was Garuda but sadly Yang doesn't fully know the man very well besides that he is unnecessarily violent to anyone who denies him something that he already considers his and he desires to rule the world...he was ambitious, powerful and dangerous enough to do it as well but he sees Kami as an obstacle to those ambitions despite Kami's own ambitions having nothing to do with the world as long as he was unrivaled in it, Yang is actually deathly afraid of meeting him honestly...Tsume was out shopping as well and he had to make protecting his family his priority, be it from Garuda or Kami, Garuda was also more intelligent and a prodigy in some sense more than he shows to people...how smart he was is debatable but he claims to have never made a decision that wouldn't increase his wealth or prove a valuable point in his life...even if he knew it was a bad one

"Ah, Yang" Kami says coming out of nowhere and standing in his way "You're not hiding something from me...are you?"

"Whatever I hide is none of your business, Kami" Yang replied sharply as Kami said, looking away "Oh? Who is that human I sense a distance from here then...she feels familiar, is she yours?" Kami had the innate rare ability to sense non-Ghouls, regardless of if he or she possesses any magic, Tsume had no magic of course, at least no _useable_ magic, but there was magic in her blood, being from the Asakura Clan, a Clan that also had Ghouls

A vortex forms around Yang "Stay away from her!" Kami clears the vortex with one hand as he looked at Yang suspiciously "What do you care...a human is a human to men like us, they are nothing but lambs to the slaughter, no?"

**Suddenly, Raimundo appears at almost the same time as Bane...Garuda was not far behind either**

"Milord...I think we have bigger fish to fry at the moment" Raimundo says as his and Yang's eyes met as Kami looked at the midday sky, it went from being normal to black as night for a few seconds as Yang's feeling of dread only increased

Suddenly, Bane appeared, coming down on Kami's face from the air with both feet as he looked away...the attack connects but Kami seems pretty irritable today as his eye turned on Bane

He immediately saw something different about the young man...he was a mutant with powers inherited from a Ghoul as Kami sent him and Raimundo flying with Dark Magic without moving, surprised that he wasn't killed as Bane was unlucky enough to collide with Garuda, who saw the boy's bold attack on the Ghoul Lord

"My my, that was some kick to the face there, Kami" Garuda said as Bane collided with him like a brick wall "Keep throwing away liable prospects like this and you might lose our...little wager, if you keep that up, Kuro-san"

Garuda stopped smirking as he looked down at Bane, who felt minute compared to him as Garuda grabbed him by both arms "I will unimaginably break him and reform him stronger...in my image...would you like to see how, father?" He spoke to Yang and threatened to rip him in half if he didn't answer

_'Kare kara te o hanashite kudasai, anata wa fuyukaidesu!'_ (Get your hands off him, you vile fiend!) Yang charged at Garuda who was getting off on Bane's anguish but Raimundo gets in Yang's way, not because he wanted Garuda to have Bane but because he was in the same position enough times to know the outcome "Hey, wait!"

"I'll wait when he's dead!" Yang wasn't thinking rationally anymore as he smacked Raimundo aside, knocking him out cold as Garuda seemed impressed _'Oya… ringo wa ki kara tōku ni ochite inai yōda, chichioya… dōshitemo anata wa totemo fukabundakara futari tomo tsureteiku kamo shirenai'_ (Oh...seems the apple hasn't fallen far from the tree, father...might as well take you both since you're so inseparable)

Garuda dodges Yang's attacks like he taught them to him, before getting behind him "That fighting stance...that style...did Kami teach you how to get yourself killed or something with that? You need to learn to fight before picking any with someone who has no interest in your personal well-being"

Garuda easily got one foot between Yang's legs and flipped him, he wasn't expecting a prodigy of Kami to be such a fool "Stay down...this was over the moment you made the first move and you, don't interfere in the business of men, boy!" He glared at Raimundo with widened eyes ready to end him then and there

Bane had passed out in Garuda's arm but his mutant side had awakened without Yang knowing, as shadows tangled around a not very surprised Garuda but being much more accustomed to Shadows and one of the best Dark Magic users currently alive, outranking even the best Ghoul Lord, this merely surprised Garuda a little and made him want Bane even more as he grinned maniacally "Shadows...? But I sense no magic...is he one of those things I've heard so much about...a mutant?"

Yang didn't like the look in Garuda's yellow eyes now as he pushed him away with a shockwake of Wind and grabbed Bane and gave Garuda a murderous look than only made him chuckle, as Yang thought _'Wh-what is he...his only reaction to being attacked like that is that...manic grin?'_ Yang thought as the attack smashed the much larger Ghoul that was almost four times the size of him and Kami combined through a tree, Garuda simply sat up with the same grin and inticingly sinister yellow eyes

Garuda kept his and Yang's eyes locked "That boy...I'm gonna cut the crap and make it even simpler for you...common dimwits...to understand, the only way he's leaving here alive, is with me...I won't lose something so damn special" Garuda says as he took notice of Yang's expression to that "Still plan to oppose me? I'm not one to show mercy to anyone who denies me something that is already considered rightfully my property...I'll make sure he keeps you in memory, at least"

Kami decides to start incinerating Garuda at those words, until nothing was left, well aware that he was possibly not dead as he never used his original body in a fight where Kami was concerned specially to toy with the Ghoul Lord who deemed himself his superior

Tsume arrived to see this as Yang, despite grateful for the save, viciously attacks Kami "They're my family...I won't let you have them!"

Kami was hit square in the face by a Wind Magic attack that sent him flying into the air but he recovers quickly midair as he landed on his feet as Tsume saw the unconsious Bane and tears came to her eyes, few things made her cry besides a scolding from her father or three brothers and seeing harm come to her son "What...Yang, what happened to Bane?"

"Tsume...take Bane and run, right now!" Yang was practically foaming at the mouth with anger as Kami grabbing Tsume and holding her in the air by the back of the neck was the only thing keeping him in place for her safety

But Kami was not going to let her off so easily _'Jikkō shimasu ka? Watashi wa sore ga totemo kantan ni okoru yō ni suruto anata wa dōomoimasuka?'_ (Run? What makes you think I'll let that happen so easily?) Kami asks, a grin appearing on his face reminiscent of a truly cruel demonic entity...he was able to scare even other Ghouls with that smile alone

Tsume reached out for Yang as she and Kami both dissolved to ash "Yang!"

"Tsume!" Yang was coming full speed with a street sign in hand to take Kami's head off but came up just shy of catching them as Bane came to as he broke down, Bane looked around as Yang looked at him without turning to face him, his Kakugan burning red on black sclera

Yang was shaking and Bane knew why as he sat near the still unconscious Raimundo "Bane...what the fuck am I supposed to do now?" He asked no one in particular

Bane has never heard Yang swear before as he seemed more concerned with finding his mother, he's never spent a long time alone with his father who all but tried to avoid him while living in the same house "Mother..." He whispered shakily

Yang walked up to his son, a cold look on his face...he had low expectations for humans, but Bane had his blood in his veins so he secretly held the boy on a pedestal over others without showing it as he took up Raimundo's body and walked away "Come...we have things to do"

Bane followed his father with a nod as they went home with this stranger, Sabaku No Raimundo

* * *

**Once home, Yang decides to start training on his own...he had Bane packing only the things he needed for they would be leaving soon**

Bane sat in the living room, Raimundo still unconscious on the couch as he leaned against the wall nearby, close enough to know when he comes to but far enough to be able to escape if he wakes up in a similar frenzy his father went into and attacks him

'What are they?' Bane thought as Yang was outside beating the ever loving shit out of a tree inwhat he calls training...or maybe venting his frustration, Bane didn't know or care to know and he was far too terrified to risk his life go out and find out _'There's no way someone could put themselves through that kind of torture and be human...then there's that man who wanted me and the other one who took mother'_

Raimundo woke up confused and did a terrible job of hiding it from Bane "Um...where the hell am I?" Rai asks as Bane looked at him before calling out to his father "Father...he's awake"

Just then, Yang came in the back door not far from where Bane stood...he was NOT happy and Raimundo knew that but not why due to the slick move of Garuda knocking him out "Ugh...what an awful nightmare, where am I?"

He looked to see Bane sitting against the wall, his head in his lap "Wait...if this brat's here, don't tell me this is Yang's house?!" He exclaimed as Yang came in just as he was about to run out and he looked mad as he grabbed Raimundo by thr throat "You...where did Kami take her...where is he with Tsume?!"

"Go ahead...kill me, my life means nothing to Kami anymore anyway and we both know where he took that pretty wife of yours" Raimondo was really in no position to be a smart mouth as Bane didn't even bother looking up at them "I think we both can make a wild guess where he went and why he took her, leaving me and the boy"

Yang grimaced as he decides to toss Raimundo in the nearest bathroom and lock the door as his attention turns to Bane as he walks out "Bane...come with me"

"What about him?" Bane asks as Yang says with authority and little care for Raimundo "He's not your problem...we need to talk away from him"

Bane follows Yang outside but keeps his distance from his father, who he's figured out by now was not human...he hadn't figured out what he was just yet though

Yang had been trying to ignore the boy most of his life, after all...neither neglecting nor spoiling him...he also wasn't surprised that Bane had Tsume's abilities but given that Bane was smarter than he looked, he wasn't expecting that he hadn't even tried to learn about Ghoul and other creatures from the magic side of his life which exists even if he was unaware of it his whole life

"There's only one way to get your mother back...I hope you know that" Yang smiles slightly "Either you stay as human as you are now and die or...become a Ghoul...like those men, Garuda and Kami and stand a fighting chance of not dying on the spot"

"Why'd you ask that...all I want is my mother!" Bane broke down in Yang's arms as he held him but showed no empathy, he had to as to not treat Bane like a child when there was nothing childish about him "I'll make you strong enough to hold your own but you must choose to accept or deny this burden" Yang said as Bane didn't understand but asked "How do I become a Ghoul?"

"If you take a blood transfusion from a Ghoul, that could work...though I won't be doing that since you already have my blood in your veins" Yang said "The most efficient way is through a bite...if I bit you, you'd become a Ghoul albeit there is no gain without pain..."

"And the shadows...?" Bane asks looking at his hand as Yang said "...are your ally, that power comes from your mother and you have my tolerance for pain though it won't be enough...I won't need to worry about taking so much care of you either, so do you accept or not?"

"I want to save her...I accept" Bane says as he felt his father's hold suddenly tighten, there were Ghouls physically much stronger than Yang but he seemed more than able to snap the 16 year old Bane in half if he so desired "Okay..."

Yang sounded like he didn't want to do it but with striking speed faster than any snake, he bites down on Bane's neck as he screamed but was held in place to the point where he passed out then regained consciousness at least twice as Yang finally lets go of him but keeps him on his now wobbly feet as he showed two tomes against the tree that he brought with him...it was not personally his as he had his own and only held them through a cloth

"Take them...they're yours and are pretty rare and expensive" Yang instructed as he handed the silver trimmed Wind Tome and the orange/red trimmed Fire tome to Bane as he felt a feeling like he momentarily left his body upon just touching the Wind Tome particularly as a tornado formed around him and Yang jumped back "Oy, watch it!"

Suddenly applause can be heard as Raimundo appeared, earning a venomous glare from Yang "Nice...so that's what you had up your sleeve the whole time, Yang?"

Yang doesn't pay much attention to Raimundo as he said "Let's go Demon Hunting..."

"Oh, I get it...that's cuz Kami's the Demon of the Ghoul Lords, ain't it?" Raimundo asks as he's still ignored as Bane felt a shiver and looked at Raimundo...sensing how strong he was and becoming visibly annoyed by it as Rai noticed "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"What is that strange feeling I'm getting from you?" Bane asks as Raimundo answers as if it was something he should already know "Magic...duh"

What Bane didn't tell him was that this wasn't the only bad feeling he was having...he was having an even worse one about Garuda and what he was willing to do to get him...he was shaking at the very thought but didn't know if it was because of terror or excitement, that could shake _anyone_ to their core. Garuda had the ability to adjust an opponent's feeling to suit himself so this might be his fault

**Bane Yang and Raimundo make it to the city once Yang had prepared himself and Bane enough for the journey and for a fight...**

No one knows what plans Kami has for Tsume and Yang doesn't care to find out...he has seen how his former master treats his women and it wasn't at all pleasant...beating them within an inch of their lives and back until they not only became no better than slaves with as much free will as Kami deems them worthy of but they felt that way as well...Kami was handsome and a rather wealthy Ghoul Lord, no woman could say they don't want that but he has decapitated women and men with his bare hands on a bad day, making even female Ghouls watch themselves around him and try not to refuse even the craziest of his requests on a bad day

Tsume was very strong willed and puts up a fight against anyone like Kami, being the daughter of a Clan Head and trained to be able to defend herself even against Ghouls, but she isn't going to do much for Kami's status as a Ghoul Lord, strength and intellect well beyond his years or what he shows at times even as the youngest and weakest of the current Ghoul Lords and his...very volitile temper that results in anyone who got off on the wrong foot with him facing something worse than death

Suddenly, Bane stops in his tracks as he turns to see Garuda speaking to a man...he didn't know what they were saying but Garuda seemed to have other ideas as he spotting Bane watching him and directed the mysterious masked man's attention to him before both disappearing like they were never there

"I feel like we're being watched...and I don't like it" Bane says as Raimundo says "You are...but don't worry, don't make a scene and it won't be a problem"

"I meant by that guy Kami called Garuda...where father bit me still hurts though, more than I expected" Bane clarified as Yang and Raimundo looked around to see if they saw or sensed that monster nearby

Bane suddenly made eye contact with a man who seemed older than Kami and had golden eyes, white almost gray hair reaching the middle of his back and wrapped in a cloth...he was also carrying many files and papers with him and seemed to be hungry as he left what looked like a market with a sandwich that was raw but unspoilt meat that smells like a human...smelt like it was once a person and was rather putrid to Bane...not like he cared what it was

The man was Abel Taeger, Alphonse Taeger's masochistic and cautious of newcomers father as well one of the many but rarely seen Councilmen that lived in the city and one of the only ones who was a very capable and calculated fighter...especially since he bad mouths Kami at every single chance he gets and has people always in wait to kill him whenever he leaves the city...which was often

He's about to take a bite when he notices Bane gawking at him "Get lost, brat before ya end up in my sammie...the last thing ya want is to anger me after a long week"

Abel shot Yang a look "Oy, Hiachi...this yours?" He pointed as Bane with a glare that made it very clear that how close he was was close enough as Raimundo said "Oh, Counsilman Taeger...I never expected to see you back here so soon"

"Save the pleasantries, Sabaku and for the millionth time, ya are to address me as Councilman Abel...this is my last working day for the next five days actually" Abel shrugged "Nothing special besides the odd occurrence that Kami's hench-monkeys didn't show up to kill me as usual...which is odd"

"Y'know, Kami wouldn't wanna kill you if you didn't have such a big mouth, Councilman" Yang says "and yes, this is my son, Bane"

Bane bowed to Abel who almost cringed at it "he's kinda weird smellin' and too nice...he ain't gonna last long here with that" Abel give Bane a stern look "it's a bad idea to make me think of you as a subservient people pleaser, kid...cut that out and don't do that to anyone in this city _ever_ again, got that?"

"Yes..." Bane say, as Abel was about to leave but locks eyes with him "...that's better, for a start"

Abel leaves with a low but feral growl "This better be good...I've had a long day" he mutters leaving towards the Ghoul Lord's tower, where the Ghoul Lord is whenever not at the Ghoul Lord's personal residence...which he would need an invitation to even enter

Bane tries to follow him but the large man disappeared quickly in the crowd of Ghouls going about their daily lives as he went with Yang and Raimundo

"For once, tell me what he's saying is actually wrong..." Yang looked at Raimundo who replied as he chuckled at the irony a bit "yeah, you're not the only one who wishes Counsilman Taeger's assumptions were wrong...from the previous Ghoul Lord's strange disappearance and no one knowing if he's even dead, J'onn's hysteria and outright delerium on the subject, Kami's complete personality backflip and the very strange but accurate misgivings of Councilman Taeger on those who rule this city and how much right they actually don't have to have things the way they are...even a lazy guy like me can see that this city is slowly but very surely digging it's own grave"

_'Garūda... Kare wa dōdesu ka?'_ (And Garuda...what of him?) Yang asks as Raimundo scowled _'Ā, kare wa daremoga shitte iru koto o amari shite imasen... Garūda wa tada kare no o shiri ni suwatte konran o tenkai shite iru no o mite imasu kare ni nanika o furitakunaide, kare to onaji heya ni todomaru'_ (Oh, he hasn't been doing much that anyone is aware of...Garuda's just sitting on his ass and watching the chaos unfold, quite happy with it too as he creates an army without anyone knowing and our happy neighbourhood Councilman can't stay in the same room as the guy without wanting to swing something at him)

"Why?" Bane asks as Raimundo doesn't seem to have all the details "Abel's son, Alphonse was imprisoned once while Abel was out of the city...and for once it wasn't his fault as he ended up in some strange facility apparently used to brainwash people...Garuda claimed he didn't know how he ended up bound and gagged in a facility he owned and Abel sadly got the news and made a detour threatening to kick the shit outta everyone involved, including our severely half-witted Ghoul Lord, which he came very close to doing...has had bad blood between the three ever since, apparently the men responsible for leaving his son there are still fleeing or hiding for the lives"

"So...you're saying he's dangerous?" Bane asks as Rai chuckles nerviously "NO...no, at least as long as you avoid getting him mad and only he's allowed to call his son a vagabond, that pisses him off even when he does it"

**They went to J'onn's library but found that they were soon joined by the Taeger's as well as many other Ghouls...oddly Bane and Abel ended up beside each other**

"What exactly are we looking for here again?" Bane asks as he got squished against the much larger Abel as other Ghouls came in, he felt more muscular than he looked until he got annoyed and snapped "This ain't a goddamn playground, sit down and read a friggin' book...you baka!"

That made everyone freeze and silently go away, whispering threats under their voices as Abel looked at Bane, glared at Yang and Raimundo then glared back at Bane laying on him before he threw him off "You again? Off, brat."

Abel gave Bane a dead serious look...he was one of those who took his job very seriously and took insults with a microscopic grain of salt

Suddenly Abel was simply staring at Bane in silence with a twitchy eyebrow as he activated his Kakugan, thinking _'This kid...his magic is nearly at my level and then some, he seems unaware of magic in general though...I wonder...how much is there hiding within ya'_

Abel, being a member of the Taeger family which wasn't a clan but had enough members to rival that of the Kurosaki Clan all the same...was one of the most adept members at the Family's three magic styles...Water/Ice, Fire/Advanced Fire (Lightning, though there may be other variations of Advanced Fire Magic) and Darkness as he used one of the Family's most subtle but effective methods of drawing someone's magic out even without them noticing

Abel touched Bane's back at the base of his spine for less than a second, sending a voltage through his body that could draw out almost all of the magic he was hiding intentionally or without him even being aware of the presence...it was also painless, so Bane wouldn't be hurt

Abel went back to ignoring Bane but grit his teeth...one thing he couldn't ignore was the boy's power...he was nauseatingly powerful to the point where even other Ghouls in the room noticed and looked very uncertain as someone as young as Bane shouldn't be nearly even half as powerful as he is...him being a Ghoul/Mutant Hybrid might attribute to most of it as his mutation of Shadow Manipulation can be mimicked by highly adept users of Dark Magic but the control he would have would be unmatched

Someone else approached Abel, his son Alphonse who touched his shoulder and spoke with an attitude Abel despised "Oy, old man...why'd ya drag us to this freakin' library with these bunch of 'normals'...knowing how fond thay are not of Binge Eaters, huh?"

Abel was impulsive, certain things went from angering him to sending him into a feral rage but he usually refrained from showing it...which earned him the respect of even enemies as he quickly, with superhuman speed locked his son's arm and slammed him on the table with one arm, threatening to break his already bent fingers

He gave him a murderous look "What did I say about bothering me while I work, boy?" He became aggressively calm as Alphonse winced "Jusus, Lemme go...I gotta go to The Underground, jeez...why'd ya drag me here if ya get that pissed about bein' bothered from buryin' ya face in some book anyway?"

"Hey, that's enough!" Raimundo tried to part the two but Alphonse stops him "Don't interfere, Sabaku!"

"Yo...Taeger-san" Yang makes his presence known to his childhood frienemy as both had rebelled against their parents and their seemingly predetermined destinies...only Yang's father was more occupied with being a clan head to care for a heir that wasn't worth much to begin with

Then again, he didn't try to kill his father...something even his clan's enemies advised him against because he would be killed very violently despite the calm man fis father was...Abel wasn't a Clan head or bound by such a rule as he nearly died at the hand of his own son until Alphonse awakened a wrath feared by Gods and Mortals alike by being captured and placed in the barely hospitable prison facility, The Crypt

He didn't wait for a prison break even though he was out of the city at the time...otherwise Alphonse would've made it to the prison in literal pieces but he did arrive to break him out with an ass kicking that even the other inmates - who Abel never touched - would still feel for a long time coming

The Inquisitors, Ghouls responsible for doing the Crypt's handiwork of keeping the peace outside the prison walls knew better than to touch Alphonse from then on...they were stronger than the Ghoul Lord but one glare from Abel after a particularly rotten day wasn't something they'd want to look forward to as Alphonse narrowed his eyes at Yang "What are you doing here, Yang...and who the eff is the brat?"

"My son...I'd watch what I say if I were you" Yang said as Alphonse replied "Gomen'nasai...for the sorry broad who's forced to share a bed and a cub with your ugly ass"

"I'm Bane..." Bane steps up to the two, reaching to shake Alphonse's hand...only to get grazed as he's nearly bitten by Alphonse as Abel gave the two a smoldering look "Careful...extendin' yer hand to a predator like that" he grinned viciously

"Look what I found..." Abel says sticking his hand down Alphonse's mouth and ripping a wisdom tooth out from the writhing bleeding Ghoul's mouth and tossing it to Bane "You'd have to forgive my son...he's a dumbass...don't just stick yer damn hand out to anyone when ya smell that good...here, fer the trouble" he tossed the tooth and a thousand yen to him

"Do you just give away money like that?" Bane tried to give back the money but Abel insists he keep it "Don't worry, I make much more than that and come find me if dad tries to take it from ya"

Yang scowls as Abel turns to his own son "Shouldn't you be going somewhere?"

Alphonse nods as his and Bane's eyes never leave each other and he turns to leave but finds a man wearing a Tanuki mask glaring at him, it was Raimundo's twin brother, Tsujin

"Oy, how many times do I gotta tell you to follow the goddamn rules" Raimundo says as he points at the written up rules of almost every library "I am _NOT_ getting in trouble for the likes of you...especially you two" he points at his twin brother and Alphonse

"Baka...I envy you working for someone so worthless" Alphonse looked at his watch "...but I have to be somewhere...and I won't let you stop me, Sabakuno Tsujin"

"Hey, stupid...out of my son's way before I skin ya" Abel walked towards the two, a Liger (Lion/Tiger Hybrid) mask appearing on his face with a Black and Gold color scheme as he swung a clawed hand at Tsujin, intentionally missing but still slashing his shirt open before pointing at Alphonse "Go...do your business but if I get word of you giving _ANY_ trouble down there...I'll kick yer ass so bad the Crypt will come get ya themselves"

The irritated Alphonse leaves for the Underground area of the city which was a separate city in and of itself usually only reserved for scientists and geniuses...neither of which he was as Bane tried to follow him but Abel lifted him off his feet "Not happenin', kid"

Yang decides to get to the point "Where's Kami?" As Abel growled "Even if I knew that, yer the last persons I'd tell...I have heard over the grapevine that he's looking fer a wifey...again though"

"So _do_ you know?" Yang insists as Abel said "You'd have to be more persistent than that...and no, I don't know anything, but I'll let ya know what I find out anything worthwhile"

* * *

**Elsewhere, in the area under the city known as the Underground...where Alphonse has just arrived to actually...he makes it to a parlor not far from the entrance to area to see someone he respects almost as much as his own father due to them being taught by the same man in a similar fashion to Yang under Kami**

Rei Coldarts was the father of Dartz and Raiko...the two were both stronger than Alphonse but absolute rubbish compared to their father...Raiko has always had shifty jobs while Dartz was still and always will be the First Mate of the Black Fang Pirates raising many including Alsphonse who tried to kill him

Their family were considered Middle-Class, not dead poor or filthy rich but rich enough to get by immigrants allowed to live in the city and come and go as they pleased...something Rei worked too hard for to let anyone - including his sons - ruin and live to tell the tale

Rei was a mid-height muscular Ghoul with silver piercing eyes and emerald green hair in a short ponytail, despite his look he was very strong, strong willed, diciplined and very short tempered...a few Ghouls were taking advantage of Dartz for wearing his bandana to hide his naturally green hair and poking fun at him even after getting the living hell beaten out of them until Rei appeared one time and almost killed all of them and gouged both eyes from one of them and giving Dartz, poking fun at the other man in return for getting beaten by an old man while threatening Dartz never to cover his hair and wear it with pride or he'd shave it all off and he still had to run errands in the city for him with the bald head

How were the two in the city if Dartz was supposed to be a member of the Black Fangs then? Well, the two can't hide anywhere that Rei couldn't find them...they weren't terrible at it but he was just too good and knew them too well

"Oy, Raiko...you managed to get the big shurikens I ordered?" Rei asks his eldest son as Raiko had gotten into the habit of trying to get the jump and attack his father which only ended in him getting hurt as he replied brushing his short hair "Yeah...y'know, ya could've given me time to get ready"

Rei glared at him "Ye a woman or somethin'? Think I got time to waste waitin' fer ya to brush down to ya ballsack?" He asked as Raiko said nothing, slightly embarrassed "Didn't think so...men don't take more than an hour to get ready"

Dartz was very high spirited, something Rei encouraged after how he went on a suicidal rampage after the loss of their mother but he did inherit his father's big mouth...causing him to tell off anyone, save for his father, and hold his own in the fight that usually came afterward

This got Garuda's attention as he was invited to Garuda's Lion's Den to fight to his heart's contrent despite Dartz absolute hatred of him and especially how he treats foreigners and mocked Rei for his wife's death...he went there to fight, not for Garuda and his bs

Rei turned to Dartz, confused a bit "I make a joke, Dartz?"

This is when Alphonse comes up _'Yo, dātsu... Itazura mēkāraiko... Rōjin rei,-dōshita?'_ (Yo, Dartz...mischief maker Raiko...Old Man Rei, what's up?)

Rei looked at Alphonse "Oh, Lil' Taeger...didn't see ya there, tryna get kicked in the throat with that 'Rojin' comment there and what brings ya to the Underground?"

"Hn...errands fer the other 'Rojin'...still selling weapons to J'onn's useless bodyguard detail, I see" he wasn't fond of J'onn and neither was Rei frankly, but a paying customer was a paying customer at the end of the day to him, as long as he was clear that Rei was no mere commoner and personally tested and inspected all his weapons before sale and knew how to fight with them...J'onn tried to blame Rei's weapons for his men being losers and none of the Coldartz were having it, especially Rei who still felt personally insulted and kept his distance from then on, knowing where his anger and pride would lead

Rei was closing up now even though he could stay open 24 hours a day and didn't mind but J'onn was pretty determined to control him in some way or form, so if he is needed customers would either come to his personal residence and he'll help them there or he'll simple reopen the Weapon Shop/ Armory/Tome Shop to help them there

"See anything strange around here lately?" Alphonse asks as Rei retorted for being called old "Ya payin', mate?"

"Saw a Shade last night...of that scumbag, besides the weird shit that's already commonplace 'ere in this city" Dartz said bitterly as Alphonse already knew who he was referring to, Kami, Shades were what they were called because it was people using camouflage magic to pass through the area which naturally disrupts Dark Magic just enough that using any kind of cloaking magic was pointless as you'd still be almost completely visible "He had another female with him against their wills...how do ye locals put up with that guy?"

"You saw Kami here last night...where did he go?" Alphonse almost demands as Rei pointed in the direction of a cave that was far away from anywhere anyone lived down here "There...that strange cave...the Big Brains down 'ere 'ave been quite curious lately but anytime ya get too close, ya sense some wicked nasty and threatenin' magic from inside...there's only one of whatever it is though"

"Interesting..." Alphonse says as he leaves to run his errands for his father "Well, I'll think about it once my business is over and done with" he came here to see a certain one of the scientific minds down here

* * *

**Elsewhere, Kami makes it to one his hideouts in the Underground...he wasn't going to be found here as he remained with Tsume until she woke up...**

Tsume was relatively unharmed by Kami, biting her never even crossed his mind but she was quite exquisite not that Kami got a good long look at her as he had his men lock him in all alone here with her...she wasn't going anywhere...she wasn't in chains or anything but Kami thought her chances of defeating him and leaving her in one piece were slim to unrealistic as she began overcoming his weak sleep magic to see him waiting with a look of sympathy

"Ooh, my head...Yang" Tsume said as she came to and didn't even notice Kami until he snapped her back to reality "Not here...he's far away by now, probably even abandoned you and in the midst of cannibalizing his own son..."

Tsume looked up to see Kami grinning at such a thought until he noticed her stumbling to her feet...he wasn't going to help her as he said "Don't worry...at least you'll live away from that hunger driven bakemono...as my wife"

"Like hell I'll ever marry you!" Tsume was quite scary when she was this angry, at least to Yang, but not to Kami "Yang would never abandon me or hurt Bane!"

"Why are you here then...?" Kami frowned as he pounded the metal door "We're all alone here, rest assured...resign yourself to your fate cuz neither of us are going anywhere" it was about that moment that Kami expected Tsume to do just that, her will seemingly broken but he has sorely misjudged her and how much she really doesn't needs Yang to survive on her own here

"You teleported somehow, didn't you...that's how we got here and Yang couldn't save me, was it not?" Tsume wasn't the least bit scared, she was actually really angry as Kami lied through his teeth "Sadly, no...I'm not an idiot as to teleport into a trap and I can't do it at will...my men, their envy has gotten the best of them and they betrayed me snd threw me in here with you...there's Demonite in the walls, it won't make me sick but I can't use any magic"

Kami was a very good and masterful liar, showing no visible reaction that would tell even the best eyes or ears that he was actually deceiving them as Tsume rose to her feet as her hair floated eerily as she swung an arm and a shadow followed "Get the hell out of my way!"

That's when Kami realized that her abilities and what Bane used against Garuda when they met were one and the same and she planned to leave here, even if it was through him as the shadow was coming right at him as he used Dark Magic in almost the same manner to dissipate the Shadow "Enough of this!"

Kami then lunged at her but she got out of the way quickly as he cracks the wall with his bare fist, Tsume then kicks him in the stomach, making him bend over a bit before kicking his face in hard enough for him to backflip

Kami lands on his feet however and holds his gut as he sneered at her "Well, what a surprise...you never struck me as someone who can handle themselves in a fight, Asakura Tsume" he wasn't bothered by any of her hits enough for it to be a problem...just surprised

"I hane three overprotective Ghoul big brothers...blame them for training me so hard since I was six so that no man could ever touch me...not even them" Tsume said as Kami said curiously "Oh?"

"You expect me to care to take that seriously?" Kami snaps, a little annoyed with her comparison between him and her brothers "They were your brothers...they wouldn't kill you...I am of no relation to you and most definitely will even if I'd prefer not to"

Kami then disappears but reappears very quickly, slamming Tsume against the wall and making an even bigger crack as he grinned sadistically as he applied pressure on her throat, slowly choking her tighter and ignoring her scratching and clawing at his face "Come...let's make each other bleed, if that's what you desire so badly!"

"Hm? Who's the dead man who dare interrupt my fun?!" Kami seethes as he turns his head to see the door slams open as his eyes turned black with on blue with anger but no one was there

* * *

_**Release her...**_

* * *

A deep disembodied voice says with no emotion as within seconds, a man appeared from nowhere standing in the doorway but his body seemed to be made completely of shadows...even the shadows seemed alive...Tsume knew who this was, too

Yukio/Yu Asakura was a member of the Asakura Clan who was shouded in mystery...even to the Clan as he was a protector of the Clan who is praised as a God as he doesn't seem to even care to be called that but appears when a member of the Clan was in danger...especially a main family member, like Tsume and he was the only Asakura known to be stronger than even Yoh but very well respected, her father and the 98th Head of the Clan

He stepped inside and indeed, Kami lets go of Tsume's throat but uses Amaterasu to burn him alive but as Amaterasu was equally Dark Magic as it was Fire Magic, he was unharmed due to his total immunty to Dark Magic or even something that was partially Dark Magic as he appeared between the two in an instant, picking up Tsume and appearing back at the door, Tsume in his arms and his back turned to Kami as the door slammed shut

Seconds later, a screaming Kami blasts his way out of the room and pursues the intruder _'Anata ga koko o deru mae ni, watashi wa anata to anata no ryōhō o hai ni yakimasu!'_ (I'll burn you both to ashes before you leave here!)

He quickly catches up to the two, Tsume remembered seeing this Ghoul only once as a girl...but this was her first time actually being approached by him and she wasn't scared...far from relieved with Kami still (very literally) hot on their tail, but better away from him

"We're surrounded!" Tsume says as Yukio replied sharply "I can see that..."

Suddenly Kami appears before them with his arms behind his back as he seemed rather proud of his men's efforts in stopping the two from escaping...they were equally afraid of what Kami might've done to _them_ if Tsume did escape

"Don't mess with my intellect...I think you only have two options left...give up willing and behave or die" Kami says as he's also had a bit of obsession with controlling Yukio for some time now and wanted to draw him out "Well, Yukio?"

* * *

**With Garuda, he ruturned to his mansion...well one of them anyway...he had plans to make**

Garuda returns to his home, he couldn't get Bane off his mind and wasn't very fond of Yang, Raimundo and Kami, being interlopers as they are, interfering with him taking Bane after the brat dared to attack him

Garuda wasn't paying attention to any of his followers as he entered his mansion and sat atop his throne "Titus..." He seethed as the man came up and bowed "My Lord?"

"Bring me that boy...Bring me my Asakura Bane" Garuda pounded his arm rest in frustration, he didn't know why but he was really pissed off "I don't care if you have to become his ally, just don't come back without him and _**don't**_ kill him"

"I shall enforce your law, Master Garuda..." Titus bowed as he looked at Garuda who already knew what he wanted and shooed him off "Yes, yes...play to your heart's content, my Animal...I don't need or want his comrades alive, they are yours to do with as you wish"

Titus left at that, his eyes always narrowed to slits and a devilish grin smeared across his face as he picked up his Death Axe and left immediately for his given task, sprinting out of the mansion

Titus could feel his master enter his mind, giving him what his targets looked like as he smirked to himself "Heh...these will hardly whet my appetite, I should meet this assassin ya hired too, Garuda-sama"

_'In time, my weapon...all in due time' _Garuda say telepathically as Titus grinned from ear to ear like a demon "As you wish, my master"

Titus intentionally takes some sub-par men with him to test Bane and friends but stalks the assassin Bane saw speaking to Garuda earlier first

"Come out...I know you are there" the Assassin said as he looked behind him, not needing to see or sense Titus to know he was there

Titus simply raises one hand to signal to the Ghouls he came with to stay where they were as he came out of hiding alone to the hired hand of his master "Well...where is my prey?" He questioned the whereabouts of Bane and company as Bane and company indeed pass by right in front of them while none the wiser that they could've just been killed as the Assassin said, with more than just a bit of annoyance "I thaought I told your master that I work alone"

"If you wish to live long enough to see my master rule this world, Uta...I suggest you shut up now" Titus points his sword at the Assassin "Lord Garuda said nothing about needing ya alive or that I wasn't allowed to play with ya...but the boy must live"

"I will accomplish my given mission...regardless of the obstacles" Uta says as Titus' murderous intent towards him only grew "You must not know the situation yer in right now...the boy comes with me, alive while I'm free to do whatever the fuck I want with ya and his comp'ny"

Titus decides to make his presence known as he jumps out of the tree and lands below, behind a wall which he obliterates with hid Death Axe and steps out into plain view of everyone as Bane and company turn to face what it was

_'Mendōna... Konkai wa nanidesu ka?'_ (How troublesome...what is it this time?) Raimundo turned only to make eye contact with Titus as he shook a bit "Oh, no..."

"I bring a warning from the next King...you must offer your lives to appease him" he pointed at Yang "and hand over the boy...alive"

Yang simply steps forward, protecting Bane "Tell Garuda he can take his warning and shove it up his ass!" This caused onlookers to gasp as no one spoke of Garuda in such a way and lived to tell about it, especially with Titus who stopped smiling with "The boy...that is all I want, I have no qualms killing ya either"

"Get lost already, Titus...we have bigger fish to fry with Kami at the moment" Raimundo says as Titus turns like he's about to leave but instead charges at them as he caught Bane by the throat and appeared behind the other two without them even able to react as he grinned madly, throwing his weapon at Raimundo "Quiet, Sabaku!"

He barely missed Raimundo "Woah...that was too close, but at least now we don't need to worry about disarming him"

Yang nodded but didn't make a foolish move to attack him or he might hurt Bane even though he hasn't yet and Bane's eyes were glowing red and Titus seems to be using his Wind Magic to cancel out Bane's before it could even leave his body

"Well...not gonna try to take him back?" Titus seemed to be challenging Yang who seems smart enough to know that he can't attack Titus without Bane ending up in the crossfire

The voice of Bane's Dark Side can be heard, but only by Bane as everyone sensed the change in him...

_**'Yare Yare...please, let us out...we crave blood and to make anyone who hurt you pay with their lives!' **_The voice sounding exactly like Bane on a really bad day says as another voice says, this one not even sounding human _**'Speak for yourself...I just want master to be free under a red moon...I will allow no one to deny him that...I've no interest in chaos'**_

**Bane could see his wolf form standing with Raimundo and his father but it soon began to change to his body...Bane was half way through his transformation when he tossed Titus like a ragdoll, his strength already tripled**

Titus managed to flip to his feet but was equally surprised and excited to see Bane in his full wolf form as he also sensed the full brunt of his scary magic "What is he?"

"Ah...that's better" Wolf-Bane growled as he seemed to be an entirely different being from Bane and liked to play dumb to fool his prey despite being very smart, wild and feral as he howled, causing a slight shockwave

* * *

**A/N - Seems like Titus has unwittingly unleashed Bane's powers, but can Bane control himself quickly enough or for long enough to find Kami and how will he fare against Garuda's loyal but monstrous right hand, Titus...what does Garuda even plan to do once he has Bane? Find out next chapter and there are Ghouls going missing because of Kami, which may include Dartz' mother/Rei's wife and Rei already hates Kami, so he won't be happy about it! R&R!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark - Don't Embrace It Either**

**Chapter 2**

**Garuda watches Titus' attempt to take Bane to please him from a distance that he would go unnoticed from...sadly, this was merely a test both of Bane and just how loyal Titus is and his determination to please Garuda like no other...**

Garuda knew where Tsume was though and while he thought of using it to get Bane or envolk the father's wrath, he had a better idea as a frown was on his face

Kami would kill her if he doesn't intervene and that, Garuda will not allow or he'd never get Bane which Kami probably knows why he hasn't made a move to do just that yet "Kami...are you waiting to see my reaction or something...well, I will teach you how to bow to those better than you!" His Wind Magic even caused the ground to shake with his hatred for Kami

* * *

**With Tsume, she decides to fight her way out while avoiding Kami...little does she know, unexpected help is on the way and they're not an ally**

Tsume and Yukio Asakura fight off Kami's seemingly never ending supply of men, but has lost sight of Kami himself as they looked for an exit

Suddenly, they heard a voice say "Savage Tempest!" As they were surrounded by a powerful vortex of Wind that sent everyone but Tsume, Yukio and Kami flying as Tsume seemed delighted "Yang?"

"No...Not Yang" a voice Kami knew too well said as Garuda appeared before them as the wind stopped...in fact, it almost felt like there was less air now because Garuda was currently enraged as he looked back at Tsume without turning to face her "Only Garuda"

"What reason do you have to keep interfering, Garuda?" Kami looked even more pissed, if that was a possibility as Garuda said "Only here to keep an eye on my interests...after all, they die and neither of us...as in me...will have the boy"

Garuda finally faces Kami with a manic look "Oh, I also planned on making you believe there is a God, hadn't I arrived in time, Kurosaki trash!"

"I don't believe in God any more than you believe God isn't a myth or merely a figment of your already messed up imagination, so tough luck, Garuda" Kami readied Amaterasu as Garuda scowled "You've never touched me with that so-called flame and you won't today, trash and I think we can agree that we both have similarly fucked up imaginations"

"First time for everything!" Kami sends a huge plume of black flames across the ground to the three but Garuda's mastery of Wind Magic was no joke either as he created an even larger vortex, the three seemingly gone when everything dies down

Kami growls as his eyes widen, he explodes in black flames for letting Garuda get away as he yelled "GARUDA!"

* * *

**Garuda returns not far from where he was watching Bane and drops the two, making sure to make himself very clear that she was not allowed to die by anyone's hands until he has Bane**

Tsume and Yukio are dropped off by Garuda as Tsume looked up to the man floating in the air, not paying any attention to them

"Tha-" Tsume was about to say something but Garuda stopped her dead in her tracks "Don't thank me...I only helped you because I was bored, wanted to mess with Kurosaki and as I said, I need you alive if I'm to get Bane, nothing more, nothing less...you are not allowed to die by anyone's hand...especially that Kurosaki dog's, until the boy, Asakura Bane is mine"

Yukio rose to his feet, still ready for a fight but Garuda wasn't in the mood for him at all either as he sent him flying with one finger as he was about to attack "That is no way to show gratitude, commoner...behave" Garuda unleashes the full extent of his magic...not to attack them but to scare Yukio back into his place

It worked too...as he still seemed willing to fight but simmered his rage a bit as Garuda decides to go back to Bane, leaving the two behind "Time to start a revolution..." He grinned monstrously, a trait he didn't share with Kami was that he learns from every single mistake he makes and sometimes even intentionally makes deliberate ones to see who he can truly trust

His attention back on Bane, Garuda senses that his power was growing, now almost equal to Titus' "That's my boy!" Garuda said excitedly as his power went up like there's no tomorrow but frowned again seeing Titus already down and Wolf-Bane tilted his head before looking right at him

Suddenly, six Ghouls/Beastkins/Orcs appeared around Garuda...they were his six paths or that was what the inhabitants of the city called them anyway, Garuda used them as his distant eyes and ears as he can see and hear through them with them baring a part of his soul within theirs and had little free will, they were also second only to Titus, who seemed to lead them and Garuda himself as he would allow no one who was under him to surpass him in power as they were equal to him in each of the six elements (Fire, Water/Ice, Earth, Wind, Light/Lightning and Darkness) respectively

Daiji sat on a branch in the shade, his flute at his waist...the same blank expression as his fellow paths, he used Wind Magic and controlled others using the music of his flute, he could also play a special tune to summon Garuda and the other paths to his location if need be, he used Wind Magic and was Garuda's Naraka Path (Wind)

Yumiko stood on another branch, leaning against a tree, she used Water Magic and wore a skin tight full body suit under the black Cloak with red clouds they all wore, the symbol was close to Garuda himself as it is said to belong to either an unknown Clan or Family related to him, she can use her magic to cast powerful illusions that were used to interrogate targets in the Dream Realm and is Garuda's Animal Path (Water)

Rakshasa, a very talented and deadly Beastkin warrior with more pride than the Lion he appeared to be was standing right above Garuda, concentrating magic to his feet to hang upside down, his body literally modified to have a retractable bladed extra Adamantium tail, two extra paira of arms and a bite force stronger than all the others combined including Garuda that petrified those he bites, he also had manipulation of force fields as Garuda's Asura Path (Earth)

Atachi and Butachi (sort of the Sakon and Ukon (from Naruto's Sound 4) of the group but not with the same abilities and they don't combine their bodies) better known as A and B respectively both made his Deva Path (A using Light/Lightning Magic in perfect conjunction and sync with B using Dark Magic) with Spectral Projection, Gravity Manipulation, a weaker version of one of Garuda's own Dark Magic abilities known as Dark Pulse and steaking the souls of their victims still don't make them the most dangerous of the group

Titus' younger brother Kudon made Garuda's Preta Path with the ability to absorb any oncoming magic based attacks or steal from their opponents via touch any and all magic as Garuda's Human/Ghoul Path (Fire), Garuda also threatened that Titus will be forced to watch him die painfully if he senses any sign of disloyalty from him, he remains loyal because he knows that Garuda wasn't someone who made jokes often...if ever when he is at risk of losing something he desires, which at the time was Titus' full and unyielding loyalty to him and only him at all times

The final body and Special Outer Path in Garuda's deadliest emissaries was an Orc once known as Garland...This Orc was the hardest body for Garuda to get his hands on but clearly not impossible, as he was already dead and buried using traditional Orc burial rituals and rites to ensure his safe passage to the afterlife, somethng Garuda also interrupted without anyone even knowing...maybe besides his son and killer, Orc Chief Voorhees, he was the largest of the group as he was even larger than Garuda and had the ability to steal the magic of anyone for his own purposes, because Garuda interrupted the Orc Burial, Garland's soul was was forced out of the Afterlife and back into his body, making him the only one of the paths that was still essentially still very much alive while the others were long dead corpses used as puppets but still a slave like the others with a part of Garuda's soul dwelling within him. He wielded the Elder Blade, an unbreakable sword with magical properties that he holds a death grip on and his very being refuses to hand over to Garuda, it was several feet long (roughly the length of a car and then some) and very heavy, it also waits for it's next rightful chosen wielder which pisses off Garuda that it's _NOT_ him

"Keep an eye on them...do not allow the boy to be harmed" Garuda ordered as the Paths suddenly got personalities of their own and dispersed with "By Garuda's Law...it will be done" the left but now Garuda was sensing Bane's magic going haywire again...he didn't care very much as the boy wasn't a threat to him yet

* * *

**With Bane...no one else could see or sense Garuda but he seems to have found him**

Wolf-Bane walked towards Titus, knowing he was unconscious but not dead but something stopped him as he looked around, even more disturbed than before as Yang noticed him now going in the opposite direction "Oy, Wolf...wrong way, ya bakayaro!" he couldn't sense Garuda yet but he was still far enough away from them that he wouldn't, spectating and almost drooling at the thought that Bane could beat one of his strongest men...he wasn't particularly thrilled that he found him but he was ready

Wolf-Bane caught Garuda at great speed and pinned him by the throat with a growl at the still unconcerned Garuda who he slashed right through only to find that it was not his real body as another Garuda appeared, further away and goaded him

"Come now, is that the best you've got?" Garuda said as he appeared further from Wolf-Bane as he slashed through double after double of Garuda as elsewhere, the real Garuda waited in the center of the forest, very far from Yang as he raised one palm before him and concentrated a dangerous amount of Wind Magic to a singular point, constantly rotating as a yellow sphere above his palm, enough to pack a devastating punch to Bane but not kill him as he looked at it with no emotion "Enough of this game...you're mine now"

He took off and quickly confronted Wolf-Bane _'Nani ka wasurete imasen ka?' _(Aren't you forgetting something?) He asked as Wolf-Bane looked back at where he left his father and Raimundo to see Raimundo recieve a slash across his chest as he said "Earth Dome!"

He created a Earth Dome around himself and Yang, Titus slashing away at the dome, barely damaging it as his eyes burned, high on bloodlust as he licked Raimundo's blood off his weapon

Raimundo's Earth Magic should be easily no match for Titus' Death Axe but while training on his own to learn his brother's Advanced Earth Magic ability to control Sand, he learned that he had an entirely different type of Advanced Earth Magic of his own, Metal Manipulation which makes his Earth Magic even harder when not using it than normal

Wolf-Bane decides to go back and kill Titus, but Garuda wasn't going to just sit around and let him do that as he charged "Rasengan!" He misses however, destroying several trees in the process with the very strong Wind Magic, which was actually the weakest of his Wind Magic abilities despite it's destructive nature

Wolf-Bane decides to rush back to Raimundo and Yang at a break neck speed, Garuda even gave him a head start but once he shot off, he easily caught up as Wolf-Bane jumped to a lower branch and shot off, the Dark Ghoul Lord hot on his tail, shooting his Rasengan after him, even from a distance "Sever all bonds, all attachments...that is the only way people like you and I become stronger, Bane...I will make you understand that as our fate!"

Titus scatches Yang's cheek in an attempt to behead him and that stops Wolf-Bane completely "Father..." Bane digressed to his human form, though still feral and wild like his wolf form as he even deters Garuda with a swift back hand to the jaw that knocked him back without Bane even looking

Dark Bane had taken over as he had a miasma of his own almost like Garuda as he looked back at him with a sadistic grin before he said "Kill...kill...must kill anyone who hurts what I strive to protect"

_'So this is the power of a Hybrid...exciting that he's this powerful and still holding himself back with those useless weak emotions'_ Garuda thought as Bane's shadow came at him as he avoided the claw barely as he grimaced in growing rage _'How could I let this Hybrid push me this far...oh, well...this is only one of many tests'_ he grins evilly at what he has planned for Bane

Dark Bane felt like his power was going to tear his body apart, his eyes having a darkness in them that Bane didn't possess as he unearths one of the abnormally big trees in the area and went after Titus, barely missing as he dodged before walking up to him, a dark aura coming over him and catches a swing of the Death Axe with two fingers

No one was able to touch the Death Axe besides Titus without some serious repercussions, not even Garuda and Bane should be no different, in fact he is, but his aura kept his fingers from making contact with the weapon as he pulled it from Titus and swung it at him but Raimundo stopped him by creating a hand out of the Earth to stop the Death Axe as he and Yang grabbed his hand, kicking the weapon aside

"Hold on a second there, Bane...don't" Raimundo asks as Bane stops and returns to normal, looking disdainfully at the tossed aside weapon as he kicked it away from Titus' feet even though they were all shaking from the display of power "He tried to kidnap me...why should I?"

"Because I'm a traitor...Garuda would most likely have my head if I went back...especially without you" Titus spoke, earning a dead serious look from Bane who asks "What the hell would you being a traitor to him have to do with me?"

"Cuz, if I kidnapped ya...it wouldn't be fer him...he must've found out but I still saved face due to him watchin' me" Titus was lying through his teeth, just as he was taught by the one person he couldn't lie to or defy, Garuda "I only played along because that monster was around"

Bane extended a hand as his Dark Side seemed a bit delighted as Raimundo asked "Hey, stupid...you do realize who he works for, right...who sent him after you in the first place and that he just nearly killed us?"

He then looked at Yang awkwadly "You're not saying anything about this...why?" Yang looks at him before his gaze quickly went back to Titus, having no trust for anyone who comes after his son as he kept it short and sweet "I just need one reason...one...and I'll kill him"

Titus stared at Yang, unblinking as his eyes flashed yellow for a split second...he seemed not to care if Yang trusted him or not, so long as Bane did

**Before they could really relax a bit, three figures appeared through the air at a fast speed...two of them carrying another person on their backs**

It was Raiko, Dartz and Rei making their last two stops for the day until Rei spotted Titus and landed before the four Ghouls "Oy, I've never seen these two before...these the ones ye wanted, wench?"

The woman nods as Yang notices it to be Tsume as Raiko grumbles "Can I put 'im down now...as if he can't walk on his own legs?"

Rei nodded, his fierce glare on Yang before scolding Raiko "Shut yer trap and put him on his feet already, Raiko...I'm not in the best of moods right now" to which Raiko obliges, dropping the man unceremoniously on his ass

Rei seemed even less jolly about this but chose to ignore his eldest son's lack of intellect at the moment as he asked "You the hubby?" He asks Yang who nods "Hai..." Raiko and Dartz cringed a bit at what their father does next once he puts Tsume on her feet as well with a cold "Dartz, hold her..." Dartz does as he was told, holding Tsume to keep her from looking with a hug, having never seen his father nearly as unhappy as he was with Yang now

"Oh, okay" Rei says very calmly and several nods as he paced in front of Yang, only his sons knew just how pissed off he was and that Yang had just bitten a bullet and angered him even further as he then charges in and tackles Yang, slapping him around "What gives ya the right to abandon her in the middle o' the Dark Forest then, huh?!"

Yang holds his arms up as Rai sat on him and slapped relentlessly "What is she even doing in the Dark Forest...when I came here to rescue her from Kami?!"

"No...I need to avenge her!" Rei says, seething as he pins Yang's arms to his chest with a monster grip from his left hand and delivered a beating of a lifetime with his right fist, no holds barred as Dark Bane walks up to him...he looked up, sensing Bane was unimaginably powerful but a very hard slap sent Bane flying to Raimundo as he warned "The adults are talkin' here, stay the hell out of this...ye too, Rai Rai before I smack ya so hard, yer reincarnation's gonna feel it ten times over" he said his nickname for Raimundo as he threatened the two pleasantly, he didn't care who he hit if his rotten mood was rotten enough and nothing scared him, especially right now

Tsume held onto Dartz and didn't look at any of it, he let her do it as he had no choice but to look, he knew Yang had no clue as to how Tsume got there if he was out looking for her all this time and trying to explain that to his father when he was mad was simply asking for a fight that he won't win as Yang was now pleading, which Rei shows no pity to "If I knew she was left for dead in that forest, we wouldn't be here!"

"Ye think I don't know ya, son of Idate?" Rei asks "I held ya when ye were a wee little baby, I know who ya are and who ya ain't...if it weren't you then aim my fist at who it is, why don't ya?"

"Kurosaki Kami..." Raimundo says as Rei suddenly snapped and released a lot of magic, his greyish-white hair defying gravity as a silver aura came over him "How dare you say that name around me?!"

"Woah, watch your temper, you were the one who wanted to know who was responsible!" Raimundo said as he pointed out Titus, who was on his knees "maybe he can prove what he's worth and help us find out what Kami's up to...or at least find the guy who's supposed to be our flippin' Ghoul Lord"

"Like hell I'm helping you..." Titus quipped, breaking his silence...Rei may be a bit calm but he's got a temper worse than Garuda's and a mouth to match as he retorts...he also has a burning hate boner for anyone affiliated with Garuda or Kami "Like damn hell ya are, mate...wanna bet I can't make ya do what I say?"

He was right in Titus' face before turning to Tsume "Oy, wench...ye can make him move with yer inherant Dark Magic, no?"

"I'm not like you...I'm a mutant but I don't know magic" Tsume says into Dartz' chest as Rei was not giving up "Sure ya do...the Asakura Clan has Ghouls who are mostly Dark magic users with very few rare Fire Magic users...I'll sell my weapons and tomes to anyone...I make it my business to know who I sell my weapon and tomes to"

"How about we take this somewhere more discreet" Yang says "Your rundown old shop's too far that we won't get caught by Kami, whose head must be exploding like Mt. Fuji right now with Tsume not in his possession"

"Don't talk about her like she's some object...dad ain't gonna like it" Dartz warned as they left for Taeger's house and Yang smartly shut his mouth about it as Raiko noticed something "We're always being watched 'round here...makes ya feel like a real bad boy, eh, Dartzy?"

**As if on cue, they were indeed surrounded by Ghouls wearing blank masks on their faces, only showing their mouths demanding to know why they were travelling with Titus and seeking registration from Tsume and Bane...**

Eight Ghouls appeared and landed in a circle around the group as Dartz clocked Raiko on the head "You and yer big mouth..."

Rei was oddly very quiet as the man directly in front of them simply raised his hand _'Tōroku o onegaishimasu'_ (Registration please and we would like you to leave that man in our custody, if you may)

"English, pissant...we don't understand that jibberish, especially to ye Mulan Rouge lookin' monkey lovers" Dartz growled, the three being very fluent in Japanese but choosing not to use it or let anyone know that they knew exactly what they were saying as Raimundo grabbed his shoulder "He said he wants someone's regristration and Titus to be handed over to them"

"No..." Both Rei and Titus said at the same time as Rei sensed them raising their magic as he did a scratching motion on his face, summoning his Megalodon mask "Go away, Inquisitors...we will hand him over when we're damn good and ready!"

"Comply...or necessary force will be needed" the Inquisitors then said, their voices showing no emotion...in fact they showed no emotion in general and it is said that to become one of them, Ghoul children were taken at random from their families in secret and trained like Ghoul Super Soldiers, making them much more powerful than even many above average Ghouls...they rarely kill, but they enforce the city's laws with no compomise and is authorized to throw you in the Crypt, a prison that gives even Ghouls an unshakable shiver...and that's even without it's wardins who excel at making even grown men know the true meaning of pain and respect it as no one who has left the Crypt has ever had a desire to return there

Bane seems a bit tired from his wolf transformation against Garuda earlier, enough that he could barely stand but could still fight as Raiko notices and says "Oy, ya okay there?"

"Fine...just a little tired" Bane says as Raiko lift him onto his back "yeah yeah, ye can barely even stand"

Suddenly, a man appeared behind Raiko from being invisible and grabs Bane "Move and die, brat" the man growls as he appears to be the same guy Bane always sees around Garuda as he backs away from the group who suddenly turn aggressive, especially Raiko who he hit while taking Bane and backing away from them "Come after me...and he also dies" the two disappear

A blade of lightning suddenly shoots past the group and through the chest of the man who took Bane, he looked around for where the long spear of lightning still connected to his attacker came from but couldn't turn around to do so accurately "What the-?"

"My my...look what I've caught here" the voice of the man who apparently saved Bane said in a very cool, almost lazy manner as Yamamoto Hatake was seen crouched on one knee in what used to be a window of an old building far enough away that Bane would never have noticed it, he wore a hoodie that intentionally covered half his face and had a strong desire to kill right now, which was rare for the calm, stoic, non-violent, easy going and sometimes too free spirited person he usually was, there was also only two people in the city who hated Kami more than he did...he would even join Garuda but he has seen what Garuda has done to people and was no fan of becoming a zombie, he bared no hatred against Garuda simply because Garuda has never hurt him like Kami has...that could change quicker than a heartbeat though

A hand on the hooded man's shoulder stopped him from killing this man though as he was to be captured alive for interrogation "Easy, Yama..."

The other man was Ryuken Salazar, known as Scar after an unfortunate meeting with Kami left his face mostly burned/scarred and him on the brink of dying or losing his mind, whichever came first as Yamamoto was his second in command and didn't need to be told that this man was to be taken in alive

Yamamoto appeared at great speed, keeping Bane from falling on his butt as he called in some of the other Hunters to apprehend the Ghoul Assassin as he swiftly sent one of the Inquisitors flying with a punch to the jaw for trying to sneak up and take Bane, he was a former Inquisitor himself and knew why they probably wanted Bane but he also had bad blood between himself and the Inquisitors, determined to not let them have their way with any young Ghoul in the city, even if he had to go against his self taught ways and cannibalize a few of them, being a Binge Eater

"Oy...stay on your feet, boy" Yamamoto says as he allowed Bane to lean against him to stay standing, his green eyes filled with compassion that he only showed to his friends and those who needed him "never allow anyone to bring you to your knees...brother"

One glare from Yamamoto was enough for the Inquisitors to leave, he detested his former life as an Inquisitor though now he wasn't bound to following the Ghoul Lord's orders due to that past life, as they weren't in any way founded, funded or controlled by the Ghoul Lord, their origin shrouded in mystery (they're sort of the Grey Jedi of Ghouls, neither good nor evil) and they don't descriminate against Binge Eaters, especially when taking new recruits to join them

"Oy, Yang...I thought I told ya never to show your face in this city without comin' to say hi..." Scar said coming up to the group and Yang said sarcastically "It hadn't crossed my mind...with Kami kidnapping my wife and all"

"Jeez...how many wives can the guy have?" Yamamoto says, stepping on the Assassin's back with great force, the other Hunters retrained and took the man for fear that Yamamoto would kill him as he looked at Tsume "Yours isn't half bad lookin' either, better than most of the others taken by Kami...then again, he can get sexually attracted to a rock if it means he can have his way with it...that disgusts me quite a lot too" Yamamoto was the only Hunter who wore a hoodie as he looks around, spotting a large man watching them, he hailed the man...clearly knowing who it was and he decides to come to them "Looks like we don't need to go to the Crypt ourselves this time, eh, Scar?"

The man appeared closer and seemed to be much larger than anyone else Bane has met, including Garuda...he was one of the Wardins of the Crypt, sporting an even gnarlier scar on the left side of his body than Scar and like Scar, bitterly dispises Kami for half-blinding him, he was the Monster of The Crypt himself, Shin

"Scar-san..." Shin clears his throat, he was one of the most naturally violent Ghouls...he had no qualms killing anyone and cared even less for their well being as he has devoted his entire existence to making sure Kami eventually ends up in his prison...excruciatingly patient and otherwise mild mannered until enraged, Shin preferred being nobody's business and rarely even leaves his prison, until he sensed Bane from across the city and wasn't much of a talker as merely making eye contact with Titus petrified him, he was cold to others by nature but held a special hatred for law breakers, oath breakers and all round traitors as his scarred eye was always a black sclera with no visible pupil since his narrow brush with death against Kami Kurosaki

His very presence was unnerving and caused Bane's nose to bleed involuntarily with only a percentage of his ever present intent to kill...he believes the biggest mistakes this city has ever made were making Kami J'onn's successor as Ghoul Lord and putting him as Wardin of the Crypt as they couldn't imprison him in his own prison should something happen and everyone knew how badly he itched to have Kami, Garuda or both of them in his prison

Shin didn't class himself among Binge Eaters, but was known to be able to eat anything as even his magic has grown it's own bloodlust and appetite of it's own thus they treat him like one of their own but he only cares for revenge as even Garuda has praised his utterly sick nature as he refuses to even enter Shin's mind, not because he couldn't...Shin never had much of a care or need for mental or emotional barriers...but what he would find there and if he could leave would be quite a concern, even for the Dark Ghoul Lord

Shin raised his palm to the assassin as he tilted his head away from him in a way that he could only see his blind eye as he opened a portal with his other hand and tossed the man through the portal with his powerful telekinesis before closing it

"Where did you send him?" Bane asks demandingly as Shin simply stared at him for a few seconds before replying "To a partner in my line of work, a torturer...he will not die, as long as my friend isn't in a bad mood and he behaves himself...we should be expecting company soon, he's the least of your problems right now"

Shin looked at the forest as in the distance something was burning it's way through and making a beeline for their location, it was bathed in black flames...Kami was coming and he wasn't happy, nor did he care who knew he was coming beforehand as everyone could sense his magic and wasn't leaving there alive if he had anything to say about it, the flames having a particular effect on Bane as he could hear Amaterasu itself no matter how far Kami was, it was very eerie to him

Kami eventually landed before them with a glare at Tsume "Ah, there you are...Where is that cretin?!"

"Garuda? I wouldn't know, he abandoned us in the middle of an eternally dark forest not long after 'rescuing' us from your crazy ass" Tsume says as if it was common knowledge as Rei growls, refusing to believe her "Lies, yer cute but not enough to give that monster a change of...whatever he has in place of a heart and I think you've hardly seen how crazy he really be"

Kami decides to allow Bane to go into his wolf form before going into a transformation of his own as he summoned his Demon mask and it seems to have become part of his face as he grew in size and grew two extra arms and a tail with retractable spikes, his hair remained black but gained a slight red tint and he grew large bat like wings that smashed the buildings near him as he spread them

There was also someone else Kami was trying to draw out...J'onn and Garuda...both of which he looked around for before say to anyone, including them, if they were listening...which he was also sure they were "Dragon...Garuda, face me and watch what'll happen to anyone who opposes me!"

"J'onn fears you...he's never going to show his face, especially if you _tell_ him to" Rei said as that only angered Kami as his pupilless black eyes flared as he went berserk as he flapped his wings sending them and anyone else flying "SILENCE!"

Dartz quickly grabbed Tsume tightly as they were all thrown away, taking the brunt of the impact as the were sent flying at a speed which would've killed her, she felt that he stopped breathing but wasn't dead as she tapped his face "Dartz-san..."

"It'll take more than that to kill me, love" Dartz says as he can be heard breathing again and looking out to see his father and Yang ready to fight Kami's new form which was now very reminiscent of his true personality, demonic "Let's go..."

Dartz helped both her and himself up as he looked around _'Where's my brother, Bane and that other Asakura guy though...?'_

Dartz was mad now as his hair started defying gravity and he sprinted towards Kami screaming as he dodged every attack and used a variant of one of Garuda's Wind Magic abilities after almost ending up on the recieving end of his Rasengan

Dartz's magic wasn't nearly as tamed as Garuda's so he knew he would never be able to mimic the attack perfectly but needed to throw it unless he wanted to get hurt by his own magic as he knew Fire and Wind with a little practice in Water Magic, mainly for healing purposes as a shuriken of Wind magic and a lot of Fire magic but his far more short tempered brother moves past him faster, carrying a large stone pillar that he smashed against him but Kami pulls his long tail between his legs and to the front of his face, crosses his four arms over that and closes his wings around that to protect himself, which works perfectly despite Kami still being thrown back

Wolf-Bane's claws had almost no effect on Daemon-Kami and Rei was unable to move all of a sudden, not because of Tsume's shadows but because someone else was here...someone who should've been here from the very beginning and could've stopped all of this before it ever began

Kami began reverting to human as a cyclone of flames surrounded him, Rei was the only one outside of Abel Taeger who could tell two things were wrong here...Kami wasn't the one to create these flames and he wasn't being harmed by the vortex as he himself reverted from his would-be Megalodon form

J'onn stood between them and Kami, but not to protect the monster he'd supposedly created with no bad intentions behind it...no, he was not just hiding from Kami and pretty much the public eye...he was seeking answers to the disappearance of another Ghoul Lord who was last seen having negotiations with Kami himself, according to both the men of Kami and the Ghoul Lord in question who were there that day they heard or saw that Ghoul Lord again

J'onn only decides to as little words as possible while making the man who was once his hot headed but kindhearted student understand his demand and anger clearly "Where...is...Lord Vlad?!"

"Hn...like I'd tell you anything" Kami laughs madly, the black in his sclera fading as he snarled, he had been planning on telling him something before he died slowly "Where is Vladamir Ivan Grigoriy...you can say it all you want, he is...gone"

J'onn's eyes burned with rage as Kami mocked "He is only one of many to fall...no need to cry over spilled blood, I never said he's dead" Kami tilts his head to the roof right above him

A man stood there, dressed in rags cleverly making his identity near impossible to discern except for one visible onyx eye on black sclera...the pupil of which shank once it fell on Bane, giving him a sense of dread and that this entity could kill him with a mere glance as he merely raised both hands and Bane could already feel a strong attraction pulling him to the man, everyone did but they were not his targets...not yet as three persons were pulled out of hiding into a rotation around the man himself like planets around a sun...at his total mercy

"That is enough hiding...you've seen and heard enough" the man spoke in the thick Russian accented voice of Lord Vlad as Garuda's Preta, Asura and Naraka Paths rotating helplessly around him, the more they resisted his gravity...the stronger it became on them without killing them, seeing as they technically are already dead as he stopped them and stared into the Naraka Paths eyes "Oh, I know you're watching, King...you naughty boy...you should've stayed out of this while you had the chance and the choice in the matter"

He then tosses the Paths to Bane's feet, keeping them under the intense gravity and said, using Garuda's full name just to piss the Dark Ghoul Lord off "Ah, I've had eyes on you for a while, King Garuda...I prefer telling you what I want to your face though...shall we, Kurosaki?" Garuda did not like certain people using his full real name, especially if they had any past or present affiliation of any kind with Kami

Kami nods as he is levitated into the air by Vlad who opens what looks like a black hole...of course, everyone attacked the two from a distance but any attack that was strong enough to reach them was deflected by strong gravity as a he opened a Black Hole with no gravity, only then did his hold on Garuda's Paths release as in an instant, Butachi, one half of Garuda's two Deva Paths appeared as Daiji, Garuda's Naraka Path played a tune that made the Deva stronger as the paths grabbed his ankles or legs at almost blinding speed and disappeared as he teleported right in front of Bane, showing no emotion

Bane was troubled by the Paths' lifeless stare, it felt to him like they were alive but dead at the same time and their magic felt the exact same as Garuda's, they've been gone for a half an hour already and he could still feel their influence and those haunting eyes

Bane then looked at J'onn...he was pounding his fist into the ground...not only out of anger at Kami's nerve but that another Ghoul Lord was working with him, one of his best friends among the Ghoul Lords, despite their differences

He rose to his feet, the blood drained from his face...he was ashamed to show his face to the other Ghoul Lords...he walked past everyone like they were never there, everyone was surprised by that reaction and Rei was absolutely livid...with his weakness and the entire situation as a whole.

Rei got in his way and slapped him hard across the face to wake him up, knowing that he also forgot someone else he owed an explanation to, someone more important to Kami especially than anything...his clan, the Kurosaki Clan "I'm coming with ya...out of goodwill and because I know how _not_ to rile them folks up...the Kurosaki Clan will need to know that one of their own has gone AWOL...I'm almost sure that they ain't gonna be happy about it though and I can keep ye from sayin' somethin' that'll really not sit well with me or worse, them"

**J'onn nods without another word as he and Rei left, leaving Dartz and Raiko to do as they please**

"You can go back home, if you want..." Dartz said to Raiko as Raiko shrugged "I think I'll go with father...seeing LeBeau getting dog piled by 60 pissed Kurosaki's will so be worth it, you?"

"Eh, I'll pass...I'll stay with the boy, just in case 'ye know who' shows his ugly mugshot of a face here again" Dartz was expecting to see Kami again "Most likely he'll be after the broad again...he better be prepared if that's the case" Dartz punched his palm with his fist, causing a mini-explosion as he looked at Bane before cracking his neck

"That kid though...he's pretty powerful" Dartz said, causing Raiko to look in Bane's direction with a look of bloodlust, before seeing him off with a pat on the head "Don't get killed, young Asakura...ye don't wanna know what I'll do if ya die before we get to spar" Bane nodded staying close to Tsume as Raiko ran off after Rei and J'onn

* * *

**Elsewhere, Garuda was throwing a hissy fit over the appearance of Lord Vlad...he didn't truly hate all the Ghoul Lords but Vlad was one, like Kami, he had a hatred for now...**

Garuda can be heard screaming Kami's name at least a mile or more outside his mansion, inside he was throwing chairs here and there as he snapped his fingers, giving his Outer Path just enough free will to answer him "Where are they?" He seethed with anger

"They seem to have just arrived, My Lord" Garland said as he opened the door and indeed, his fellow paths entered as Garuda snapped "What the hell is that other Ghoul Lord doing playing with my Bane?!" Garuda's rage seemed to have reached a breaking point now as the two in question were close enough that he could sense them...meaning they broke into his house as he and the Paths, all of them, went to confront them

**Downstairs, Garuda's guards were no match for Kami and Vlad seemed to be waiting for him**

"Ah, there you are, Kingsley...like what we've done with the place?" Kami pointed at Garuda's men all eith floating in zero gravity or having enough gravity on them that they couldn't move an inch

"My name isn't even Kingsley...that's Garuda and _**only**_ Garuda to you" Garuda replied, making no attempt to hide his anger as his yellow eyes was now glowing rings on black "What the hell do you think I should do to you for this...killing you will be too easy, way too merciful and more than you deserve"

"Why did you same the Asakura's...what if they had died in that forest?" Kami asks as Garuda said "I have my reasons for keeping her alive as well as saving her...none of which I'll be telling you, get out" Garuda was no generating enough winds to break the windows as he had two spheres of Dark Magic in his palms

This was Vlad's turn to speak "Here's a suggestion, King Garuda...the boy is ours, your interference will be tolerated no more so I'd advise you to give up on the venture"

Garuda gave trembling smile "Oh, that great advice...but aren't you in the wrong country and on the dead wrong continent to be telling me what to do, I have plans for the boy and no one will stand in my way, follow your own damn advice!" Garuda was very close to fighting the two if they pushed him any further and Kami was enjoying it

Suddenly, an invisible blade of Wind cut both Ghouls on the cheek as Vlad touched the wound then looked back at Garuda "You've drawn first blood...you know this means war now, right King?"

_'Anata no yōna u~ōmongāde sae,-betsu no koto o oshie raremasu. Urajimīru to anata no shōgō wa kokode wa muimidesu.'_ (Even a War Monger like you can be taught another thing or two, Vladimir and your titles are meaningless here) Garuda snarled as Vlad sent a wave of immense gravity at Garuda, but he defends himself with a blade made of both Wind and Dark magic as well as a shield of Dark Magic from his paths

The two were gone when the attacks cleared Garuda glared out a window, his yellow on black eyes still glowing "You do realize that you just made a big mistake that I won't allow you to regret...right, Kurosaki-sama?"

* * *

**A/N - Looks like Kami has an ally Ghoul Lord working with him...but Vlad always has his own plans apart from Kami...why did he betray the other Ghoul Lords and help Kami, what is he planning and what consequences will that have for Bane and Garuda? Will it be too late before Bane realizes that Titus is still very loyal to Garuda or will he end up really betraying the Dark Ghoul Lord and what will that mean for his and Bane's fates? R&R!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark - Don't Embrace It Either**

**Chapter 3**

**Garuda decides that he's fed up of Kami's games and wants Bane NOW, he doesn't care who he has to go through, step on or kill to do so either...something he and Kami greatly differ in, as he doesn't care what people think of him whereas Kami does...to an extent, even if it's a very low one**

Bane had said his goodbye to Raiko and Rei as he noticed that Dartz was following them...very concerned about Bane's safety with Garuda wanting him

They were half-way to Yamamoto's house but walking right into one of Garuda's unseen traps where he lies in wait...one suited specially to tend to Bane and Titus

"Why is he following us?" Bane says looking back at Dartz, who looked back at him with no discernable emotion as Titus growled "Don't. Care."

"So long as he's not trying to kill us, I don't see a problem...he's a bit of a downer though" Raimundo says as Tsume said "I don't think he's all that bad...if not for him, Kami would've killed me back there"

"I don't trust him yet, but I like him as he's definitely against Kami and Garuda" Yang says as Bane falls back to talk to Dartz, introducing himself "Hi, I'm Bane...uh, why are you following us?"

"I already know who ya are, mate...and ye just decided that ya wanna go to war with the War-Monger himself, Garuda, I'm not gonna just sit idly by and let ya do that alone" Dartz said as Bane added, pointing at his friends "Hey, I'm not alone"

Dartz sneered darkly at them however "Heh, ye really don't know what yer up against, do ya...these guy signed their own death warrants going against Garuda, he'll make ya watch them die slowly but they will die goin' up against him...at least, without me they will...then there's Garuda's little traitor there...ye think Garuda's just gonna let ya walk away and tell him to fuck off when yer so important to him?"

"Forget about it, I'm the one who will kill that bakemono...anyone who gets in my way is dead too" Titus snarls the same thing Dartz was already sick of hearing as he snapped "What are ya, stupid...ye think ye can even get close to him with that butter knife to do _anything_ before he can shove it up yer ass? Don't waste my time...you'll only end up bowing to him and bein' his little bitch again"

That was when they heard a voice "Brother...?" Titus turned to see his brother, Kudon...the only person on the planet that was truly important to him as he raised his arm, causing them to stop in their tracks as he asked "Kudon-aniki, how did you escape?"

"Well..." Kudon stepped away as Titus was about to embrace him as an arm appeared around him from a thin mist that suddenly surrounded them, of course Titus became furious and swung his weapon but that was no longer possible as he was paralysed in place mid swing

"You would dare swing at your master...your father, Titus-shounen?" The voice of Garuda said calmly, making the this mist retreat as he looked at Bane and the others, his fury was undeniable even if he was calm "Asakura-san, don't think I've forgotten about you...one step and I'll bisect these two like the little lab rats they are...just try me"

"Don't!" Titus semed to be warning them as well as King Garuda chuckled "Don't act like you're one of them...their friend...in front of me, tell you what, you reveal a little secret to them and I'll reveal a little something I've been keeping frm you, a fair trade or should the words come from dear young Kudon's mouth himself?"

"Explain yourself, now!" Titus suddenly snapped again as Garuda caresses his cheek "The first think I ever taught you was patience, Titus...something you both were lacking but is no longer Kudon's problem...you were sent to bring the boy to me and you have served that purpose spectacularly...your reward, the same as Kudon for his impertinence though, death"

"I won't let you kill him, I don't care what you do to me...don't touch anyone else!" Titus seemed to be pleading but Garuda wasn't swayed by this, only further angered as he was freed "bow and beg for forgiveness of your own free will while you still have it then"

Titus' eyes were blank but he hesitated "reveal what you know first..."

"Some nerve making demands of me...but okay" Garuda said as he circles Titus like a predator would it's prey"What you're so desperate to protect from me...well, what can I call it? A puppet? A path? Maybe just another corpse..."

"He would never-" Titus snarled as Garuda snarled "Oh, but he will if it meant that I wouldn't kill you like I originally planned once you were old enough to serve my own purposes...I actually killed him a long time ago, in 'self defence' of course, when I revealed the same things I'm revealing to you now, to him"

"So he's...a Revenant?!" Titus was speechless as he held his head, dropping his Death Axe "Garuda...I'm DONE being manipulated!" His voice made a slight shockwave

The tipping point was when Garuda, who still could care less about what Titus or anyone else thought reached and put a hand on Kudon's shoulder "Technically, he'd have to be killed then revived to be a revanant...his soul isn't in this body anymore at all but the point is, you're both mine and we're leaving with Bane-san...kill everyone else if you know what's good for you, my Angel of Death"

Garuda stepped back and frowned however, a slash to his throat narrowly missed by Titus, who was now lashing out at everyone "Get away from me...like hell I'm goin' _anywhere_ with _you_"

Titus attacks Garuda wildly and anyone else who even tries to get near Kudon, but he always missed the man who raised him and he even saw as a deity of some kind at one point in his life as his attacks all couldn't touch Garuda who knew him, his powers and just what triggered him all too well for anything to come as a surprise to him

Little did he know, Titus had been keeping secrets from him as well as his mind was completely blank with rage...moving in an almost programmed manner, but grinned monstrously "Kill...you hear me, you goddamn freak of nature? I...will...fuckin' kill you!"

There were many points in Titus' life when he was given some of Garuda's power for his undoubtable loyalty to him...the same went for all Ghouls within Garuda's inner circle where Titus was one of the leaders

Garuda didn't know, but he only made it seem like he was using up all the power given to him but the truth is that he's been saving and hiding all of it deep enough within himself that Garuda would think he was simply being wasteful with it

Titus' eyes turned bright yellow as his speed, strength and magic almost exceeds Garuda's for a short time...there was a reason other than his love for bloodshed that he earned himself the moniker of the Angel of Death, he was smarter than most people, Garuda included, gave him credit for and knew many ways to kill people than even people who have been killing before he was even alive like Kami and Garuda himself...some not even needing his direct presence with his skills in Fire and Wind Magic

Titus roared as he consumed Garuda in a plume of red flames but Garuda dodges that at point blank range as well, his speed was nothing to laugh at "I can see even the slightest twitch in your muscles and react to suit...I've watched you fight in my Lion's Den every _**single**_ time, remember?"

_'He's right...there's no point in being at his level, if I still can't even touch him'_ Titus thought, already knowing everything Garuda was saying already and that outsmarting him was beyond pointless but he still refuses to back down or allow Bane and friends to help him even though he knew that without their help, Garuda will kill him despite his stubbornness

Bane watched the two, wondering how Garuda wasn't a pile of ash right now "How did he survive that?"

"Stop ghosting around and fight me seriously!" Titus snarled as Garuda appeared across from him, barely scathed by the attack, his arms behind his back as he looked very much tired of Titus and his temper tantrum _'Hontōni? Anata wa soko ni hyōji sa reta wazukana chīsana hikari no shō de, watashi no zenryoku no pāsentējide sae watashi ni made sokuteidekiru to hontōni shinjite imasu ka?'_ (Really? Do you really believe that you can even measure up to me at even a percentage of my full power with that meager little light show you just displayed there?)

Garuda wasn't fazed by the attack but that didn't stop Titus from keeping up his assaults as he swung the Death Axe with reckless abandon as Garuda now simply deemed him unworty to even put up a fight against

"Why won't you let us help you?" Bane was itching to hurt Garuda, even if the much stronger Titus couldn't do much of anything against him, this made his powers act up as the menacing aura of his dark side appeared

This got Garuda's attention, remembering his last go against this power...it was definitely not something he wanted to trifle with but also something he really wanted to control, even making him a very liable replacement for Titus now that he's served his purpose

"Oh, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but...you're being replaced as my loyal angel effective immediately, Titus-san...no hard feelings...wait, a lot of very hard feelings" Garuda says, spiking his own aura as he finally retaliates, punching Titus in the chest and levelling a good amount of buildings "I can't allow you to live though...you know too much, sorry"

* * *

_**[Screen splits showing half of Bane's face and Garuda's face]**_

* * *

Bane charges at Garuda with Dartz at his side, both attacking at the same time in apparent sync...making it so if Garuda dodged one of Bane's attacks, he'd only move into the way of Dartz' axes

Then they felt it, Dartz' axe was going for Garuda's face when gravity itself turned against them, there was an invisible shield protecting Garuda and exerting a strong gravitational push on Dartz and Bane, the same went for if Garuda tried to touch either of them

Garuda was even less pleased about this as they were forced away from him...Garuda looked around feverishly for the attacker and was almost foaming at the mouth with rage since the last time they intruded on his mansion to boast straight to his face as Vlad revealed himself to be invisible between the three with his hands facing them on either side of him

"Kami's lapdog..." Garuda says, twitching with anger as Vlad says with pure sarcasm "Aw, such a fine welcome, King...but I am not Kurosaki's mutt...I have my own plans, they just happen to coincide with his...for now"

Vlad seemed to enjoy being in total control, much like Garuda knew all the Ghoul Lords did, but things were different in his case as anyone who served under him were to follow his rules and do his bidding to the tee in hopes not to envolk the wrath of a man nicknamed by his own people after that very sin, he wasn't above the rank of a Fhurer but was still called one while earned a very fitting nikname of _'Гнев Воплощенный/Gnev Voploshchennyy'_ (Wrath Incarnate)

Vlad was known to let his Hunters starve as he only saw them as gatherers of prey for the higher ups, he personally kills anyone who decides of their own free will to discharge themselves from active duty (straight up quit their job) or deserting the country altogether...they would be caught even if they made it all the way to another Ghoul Lord's country, something that already had other Ghoul Lords on edge with him and trying to reprimand him by calling him evil and excuding him from many of their impotant Ghoul Lord get-togethers

The Ghoul Lord distanced themselves from him even more when he merely smiled viciously when he was called evil by none other than the then kind-hearted but still temperamental Lord Kami...oddly enough, Kami turned out being the traitor before himself

_'Watashi no shikai kara jigoku o shutoku, anata wa haji o kakimasu!'_ (Get the hell out of my sight, you disgrace!) Garuda snaps as he frees himself from the gravitational hold of Vlad and charges at him and Bane as he grabs the helpless young Ghoul by the throat "Don't you dare touch him!"

_'Kakatte koi!'_ (Bring it on!) Garuda charges at Bane with an especially cruel look in his eyes, preparing to teleport away with him but Yang got in the way snarling "Get _AWAY_ from my son!"

Once the air cleared, no one could see or sense Yang or Garuda as Vlad was the only one completely calm as he neither had any attachment to Yang nor did he care one bit what Garuda might be doing to him as they speak, which angered Bane enough for him to go into his Wolf form and attack Vlad

Vlad used gravity as his bitch again but to make himself much lighter while dodging Wolf-Bane's very predictable attacks then much heavier without lacking speed when he counters Wolf-Bane with his own attacks that are only narrowly dodged "Calm yourself, stray mutt...What Garuda does is none of my concern...Kami's the one who wants your body but he will not have your power"

"You betray your comrades...make fun of a father protecting his son..." Wolf-Bane growled as he stopped attacking and glared venomously at the Ghoul Lord "and you have the nerve to lecture me?!"

"You've forgotten your place, boy...I tell you what to do, not the other way around" Vlad says as he pulled Bane back, forcing him to attack him again "Imagine your power in my hands...the destruction...the war, as long I get that...who cares what Kami does with your empty shell of a powerless body"

He then phases his hand into Wolf-Bane's chest as he screamed while being held by the face by the Ghoul Lord's large hand and he pulls out a purple orb that was only a small fraction of Bane's power which forces him out of his wolf form as he fell to the ground motionless with black pupilless eyes but alive

Tsume charges at the now retreating Ghoul Lord who shrink the orb from the size of a basketball to the size of a marble and places it in a special jar on his waist but Dartz catches up to her and stops her from getting herself killed as Vlad disappears into a black hole...but he stops "A parting gift, friends...Asakura"

Everyone attacked at the same time from a distance, including Tsume with her shadows but before the attacks could get anywhere near him, he snaps his fingers as a man appeared and used a sword that was bigger and heavier than himself to block all the attacks at once, he was Borealis and he was one of the many victims of Vlad's wrath when people refused to do as he told them to

Vlad had turned Boreales into a killing machine, as if he wasn't already one, as he had no control over his body as it reacts to anything Vlad tells it to do, to prove a point...instead of getting his own hands dirty when Boreales tried to desert his country and flee to the City Island of Karan (an Orc city that takes over an entire island and is ruled by the Katan Tribe's Orc Chief and an old friend of Dartz, Voorhees), he was caught halfway there and taken back home kicking and scream before Vlad made the worst example of him possible by making his body listen to any order he gave to it and ordering him to kill his wife and child as publicly and gruesomely as possible, his body did as it was told an slew his family as he was left haunted by what he had done to this day, he even tried to take his own life then and there but wasn't allowed to by Vlad who had turned him into his personal slave/killing machine, his personal literal nightmare

He took a vow of silence from that day and never spoke again from the trauma and the faces that his actions made him never see again kept replaying in his mind, he even looked broken as he was no stranger to killing but his family was the only thing that kept him sane before Vlad took it from him

"Slaughter them..." Vlad said as Tsume swore she saw Boreales mouth the words 'Forgive me, Lord' before charging at Dartz swinging his sword at him as he defended with his axe as best as he could "Shit...Bane, get up!" Bane was still unconscious however, Garuda sure wasn't holding back when he hit him

Tsume tried to get over to Bane but Boreales put his sword in her way but she used her shadows to catch him by surprise and knock it away from him but he thrusts his palm at her chest knocking her back hard

"Y'know, you'll never get a girlfriend treating a woman like that!" Raimundo says as he turns a part of the ground into mud and swallows Boreales as Dartz facepalms at Rai's clever comment as he trapped Boreales in a shell of hardened mud cement before going to help Tsume "You okay?"

"I'll live" Tsume nods as he helps her to her feet "Oy, mud-slingin' smartass...grab Bane and let's get outta here"

Raimuno did as he was told and grabbed Bane's body "Right, Taeger doesn't live too far from here"

* * *

**Dartz carried Tsume on his back with Rai at his side carrying Bane as they made it to the house in no time to find Scar and Yamamoto already there with Alphonse Taeger**

"What took ya so long?" Alphonse joked to Dartz as the three gave him a murderous glare "We got a Ghoul Lord's monstrous right hand hunting us and you really need to make a joke like that?"

"What the hell happened to you guys...and where's Yang?" Scar asks as Raimundo placed Bane on the couch as everyone fell silent as Yamamoto asked "Well?"

"G-Garuda took him..." Raimundo muttered as Dartz explained "Garuda tried to take young Asakura but he got in the way and was taken instead...he could be literally be anywhere then we got attacked by that Ghoul Lord trash!"

Dartz was evidently pissed off as Alphonse said "Garuda's gonna pay fer this..."

"But what does he want with Yang and Bane?" Scar says as Yamamoto said seriously "Garuda...Kami...what is this, some sort of competition with them"

"Well, I go to the Lion's Den often enough to know what Garuda'll do to ya if ye even mention the name Kurosaki in his presence or worse, in the same sentence as his own name" Dartz says "let's just say, it's not fun watchin' a guy be made to implode feet away from ya and hope yer not next, can't think o' anyone who hates Kami"

"Why're ya havin' a meetin' in my house then?!" Abel Taeger burst in, he seemed more bothered about something than angry at them though as he said "get that dead brat off my couch, Alphonse!"

"You're not touching my son and he's not dead" Tsume dared both Taegers to touch Bane but Abel ended up catching her as she got another dizzy spell as he warned "Somebody explain what's going on here before ya get thrown out the door or through a wall"

"Um, Lord Vlad...the Russian asshole of a Ghoul Lord... kinda sent his weapon after us" Raimundo said, smiling sheepishly as Taeger and Yamamoto respectively nearly choked on their freshly brewed and piping hot cups of coffee "that's after Garuda took Yang"

"Are ya serious, Sabaku and the place you chose to hide was my house?!" Abel snapped as Dartz said "We managed to put him down...How long he's gonna stay down however, I dunno"

"That Titus dude straight up betrayed an already mad Garuda to his face, too" Rai adds, getting Abel's attention "he got hit hard and flew off somewhere...maybe we should go find him"

"That guy is bad news...don't bring him in my house" Abel orders "So that dog betrayed his master, only to desert you when ya needed him?"

"More like he got suckered then sucker punched across the city by Garuda...who killed his brother and made him think he was protecting a corpse from Garuda that already belonged to him" Dartz said "We'd be dead and Bane would be the one with Garuda, if not fer him tryin' to get his revenge on Garuda on his own"

"That Ghoul Lord is gonna pay when I find him..." Dartz said as Bane was coming to as Bane looked at him "Rise an' shine, sleepyhead"

"Dartz...where am I?" Bane said as he woke up to see Abel glaring murderously at him "Get yer feet off my couch before I chew them off!"

"Taeger-sama..." Bane jumped to see the angry Councilman looking away from him "Mother...Father?"

"Daddy ain't here, mate...ya went lights out before he was taken so..." Dartz trailed off "he sacrificed himself to keep you from Garuda"

"What?!" Bane jumped up "Where's Titus then?"

"Garuda tried to dispose of him...who knows where he could be" Raimundo said as Bane felt really bad "This is all my fault...isn't it?"

"No, but it will be if I find that Hoodlum anywhere in my house" Abel snarled as Bane rubbed his face "Why do you hate Titus so much...Mr. Abel-san?"

"Tell him and his slavemaster, Garuda to leave me be when I leave this city on business that's clearly much more important than their lives then" Abel snarled as Alphonse asked "Had to fight your way home again?"

"What do you think?" Abel glared at Alphonse's stupidity "That good fer nothin' Ghoul Lord is just askin' fer a piece o' my mind...both Kami and J'onn, I fell sorry fer ya having to deal with those wretched scum, Bane-san, you seem respectful...albeit a little stupid"

"Please excuse my father's mouth" Alphonse grabs his father who suddenly became very still replying "I may have brought you into this world, Alphonse A. Taeger, but don't think I won't take ya out of it this second if you don't let go of me"

Alphonse lets go of him and manages to dodge a roundhouse kick to the face "Sorry"

"Can I train with you, Abel?" Bane asks, wanting to train with him because he was strong and clearly willing to fight anyone who is dumb enough to pick a fight or give him a reason to pick a fight with them and Dartz wanted to join as well as he said "Interesting...I don't see why not, we'll do it elsewhere though"

* * *

**Meanwhile with Garuda, he had Yang in chains as he fought against his restraints but had no chance of escape...**

Yang woke up bound by chains in a dark room under what sees to be the Garuda Manor, Garuda's large and probably really expensive mansion...it was dark as he heard a large door right in front of him creak open heavily before slamming shut and probably sealing itself with Magic and chains

Garuda snapped his fingers as several wall mounted lanters lit up the cell with a yellow flame as he was seated on a chair as Yang looked at him coldly as he said "Hello, fa-Yang"

"Let go of me, you psycho!" Yang snapped, fighting against his restraints, but no matter how much power he put into doing it, he couldn't break these goddamn chains as Garuda looked away from him for a moment before glaring at him "you people keep calling me these names...I might start taking offence and you don't want to be in the position you're currently in when I do, believe me"

Yang spitting in his face was the last straw on Garuda's hold on his temper which broke completely, the tips of his fingers turned into sharp, menacing claws as he got up and strode over to him deciding to go to town on his body with the most calm anyone will ever see in him, seconds later Yang's screams can be heard as his shirt was so badly shredded that it now looked like a jacket and and a massive X-shaped wound on his shaking body, Garuda held his chin with his hands back to normal and forced him to look him in the eye

"I have something to show you...don't worry, behave and you needn't worry about it" Garuda says as he slouched back into his seat and a small yellow orb appeared in his palm, it illuminated the room in a bright yellow hue as well as it seemed to have a small wispy tail, it was a part of his soul

"Know what this is?" Garuda asks, getting into Yang's personal space "Wanna know what happens if I put it in your body and keep it there by force?"

_'Hijō ni tsuyokute hijō ni junsuina jaakuna tamashī... Watashi no jaakuna tamashī no ichibu'_ (An exceptionally strong and very pure evil soul...a part of my evil soul) Garuda whispers with a manic grin as he kept Yang's eyes locked in a penance stare with his _'Anata wa sore o shori dekiru to omoimasu ka?'_ (Think you can handle it?)

Garuda pushes his soul mere inches from Yang's stomach when he felt it...a burning sensation that was unimaginably painful, the kind of pain that made you scream just looking at it as he screamed out as his skin was already being blakened and corrupted by it without it even being in contact with or in his body yet

Garuda doesn't want to put it into his body, gladly for him, though as he pulled back as he grabbed Yang's hair and kissed him before saying "Serve...or I'll make you _**pay **_for interfering with me and what I want"

Yang's eyes began flashing between his original red and yellow, Garuda remarked that he had an exceptionally strong soul but doesn't really care about him otherwise and won't be treating him like he's even pretending to care as he forces his magic into Yang's body without putting a part of his soul in him as he writhed and resisted in agony

"The more you resist, the more agonizing it'll become" Garuda frowned as he knew Yang was fighting tooth and nail, Kami taught all his acolytes to have very strong defence to possession and mind control, especially when he failed miserably to seal him away and took a few steps back to admire his handiwork _'Nante subarashī'_ (How very splendid)

He grinned darkly as with a swish of his wrist, he freed Yang from the chains to see if he still wanted to murder him, Yang fell to the ground but he merely struggled to his feet, Garuda feeling the urge to step on him...he may no longer hate Garuda but Garuda still very much hated him as he looked straight ahead with black sclera with no pupils

Garuda now wanted to test his loyalty again with a series of questions _'Watashi wa ima... Watashi o kōgeki shitai nodesu ka?'_ (I wonder...do you desire to attack me right now?)

"No" Yang answered in a short and sweet manner

Garuda circled him as his eyes turned even more sinister _'Watashi no yōsei de koroshite kuremasu ka?'_ (Would you kill at my behest?)

Yang nods, as Garuda looked pleased that he wouldn't have to kill his new pet "Go out...Bring Bane-san to me alive, make sure his friends never see another sunrise again, my pet...my paths, take as little or as many of them as you wish"

Just then, Yang's head went down as a black aura came over him and his pupils finally appeared but instead of red, they were ringed and bright, burning yellow "By your word, Garuda-sama"

"Go, my Architect, my Solstice" Garuda whispered into his ear, curious as to how Bane and friends will react to the new gift he was sending their way, now he only needed to find Titus and return his Titanoboa, his nickname for Titus, to the fold as he was still a son to him, he also knew him too well to think that he could've killed him so easily "I will deal with Titus myself, a firm hand is needed for that one"

* * *

**A/N - Looks like Garuda has managed to bend Yang to his will without putting a part of his soul within him...how will Bane and the gang deal with Garuda's new pet, Yang/Solstice as well as Vlad's killing machine, Boreales anready hunting them and what plans does Garuda have planned for his now former right hand, Titus who managed to anger him by betraying him instead of Bane as he was supposed to? We'll see next chapter!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark - Don't Embrace It Either**

**Chapter 4**

**Yang/Solstice appears in another room, there Garuda's paths, all except the Outer Path, Garland who was away running a personal errand, specially for him, meanwhile Garuda finds Vlad and plans to torture him both for information and his own pleasure**

Yang/Solstice makes it to a room not far from where he was held by Garuda...he reaches for the door but stops as an evil grin appears on his face, he could sense the Paths were expecting him and if they thought they were going to attack him and get away with it, they were sadly mistaken

He opens the door, showing no emotion as the paths sat in the large room,munching away at several of Garuda's own men...Why?

Well, Garuda's men know a rule that no one enters a room where all or even the majority of his paths are in by their lonesome without him, many of them decided to disregard his word and try to enter the room anyway, which not just anyone could do anyway without a special magic lock held by any member of his inner circle

Garuda decides to do nothing about it, but make the Paths kill anyone foolish enough to enter their space without permission thus making anyone have second thoughts of going in there, he hasn't lost any men since then though

Solstice/Yang looked to see the Paths, one of them was missing...The Outer Path, Garland...but that didn't seem to bother Solstice as he stared around the room at each path coldly, he needed to choose who went with him to retrieve Bane for his master so he chooses them all "All of you are coming with me...to bring Asakura Bane back to Lord Garuda"

The Paths nodded to their orders as Yang took off, with them not far behind as they left Garuda's mansion

**Garuda was still in the same room his new weapon left him in, amazed at something...**

"It seems I've accidentally released some very well hidden power within you, Hiachi Yang..." Garuda spoke to himself, his mind reeling a bit at what he could do with Yang and what if he had accepted a part of his soul, he was cautious however and kinda glad that his offer was refused "Good thing he refused my offer though...I wouldn't want him to go around thinking he could use my power against me if Bane should somehow liberate him from my control, which is a big 'if' in and of itself"

Garuda's head suddenly jolted up "Hn? Oh, I'd almost forgotten about you...almost" he suddenly teleports away

* * *

**Elsewhere, Vlad was walking through the forest since he left Bane...he seemed to be looking for something...**

Vlad walked through the forest, he had an uninterested look on his face as he hated being in forests most of the time when suddenly he suddenly spun around, using gravity to crush a large boulder out of existence _'Anata wa nogashita... Kanzen'na baka'_ (You missed...complete idiot) Garuda says from the other side of him

"Don't you have babies to go eat or something, fuck face...if you haven't noticed, I have more important things to worry about than you" Vlad seemed very annoyed by Garuda's very existence which surprised the Dark Ghoul Lord "I don't take kindly to clowns like you taking the title of Ghoul Lord for their children's games"

Garuda flinched at that, he was pissed but responded calmly "Children's game?" He said through his teeth "I am a perfect counter to the disease of the likes of you, Ghoul Lord...and the title is 'Dark Ghoul Lord' you simpleton"

"Ghoul Lord...Dark Ghoul Lord...Scapegoat, I think you've been around people who actually care what you think for too long, King" Vlad chuckled darkly "I don't care what you call yourself, you're nothing but an ant under my boot either way"

"Okay" Garuda frowns "glad to know we think the same of each other, I'm done _telling_ you to get out of _my_ city...now I'll ship you out piece by piece"

"Tell me you don't think you can win this with barely more than half your soul..." Vlad frowned as Garuda replied "Who needs a soul?!"

_**[Screen splits showing the pissed, sadistic glares the two gave each other]**_

"Enough of your rambling then, Graviton Pulse!" Vlad sent a pulse of strong gravity Garuda's way, but he countered with an attack of his own "I won't fall for the same trick twice, Dark Pulse"

The two remained unscathed in the end but Garuda, of course noticed something "Great minds think alike, I don't want you here but we can work together, we are both users of Dark Magic after all"

"So is Kami and you can both use Wind and Fire magic respectively, what is your point?" Vlad was equally mad but he was making a point "I get respect through hard work though as you gain respect only though forcing other to respect you and manipulation"

"Don't lecture me like I don't know the most evil Ghoul Lord and don't play a saint for me either...even to your own colleagues, you're also a manipulative bastard...you threaten the families of those you want to work for you with torture and death...like your little swordsman you sent after my boy, Bane" Garuda snaps "You've manipulated others into being your weapon just as I have...another similarity between us or did you think I didn't know"

"So you know about Boreales...still, who cares?" Vlad charges at Garuda with a punch "Graviton Punch!"

Vlad punches Garuda, but only hits a dark magic shield as Garuda said "Dark Shield" this still rocks Garuda a bit though as Vlad was much stronger than he looked and staggered the Dark Ghoul Lord a bit "Time to put Kami's mangy little big mouthed mutt down...kneel to me like a good mutt!"

"I'll pass but surely, you don't think splitting your soul up...fragmenting it...so much doesn't come without at least some consequences?" Vlad said as Garuda suddenly held his chest and closed one eye, this only started three years ago but the limit to how far away his paths could be from him became shorter during these rare attacks of magic poisoning...a non deadly (as in no one has actually ever died from it) and curable condition that usually never bothers him, why he pays little mind to it, but flares up randomly and it made his body, specifically his heart, hurt enough for him to be out for days...it was also harder to keep control of his only path that was still a living breathing person, Garland who regains his will and most of his memories at this time, causing the other Paths to have to hide Garuda and themselves from the not at all too pleased former Orc Chief's rampage

Garuda's pain only lasts a few minutes though as he rises to his feet, his eyes burning with anger and hatred as he raised his finger, as a small yellow Rasengan appeared abobe his fingertip before he floats up above the trees before it quickly grew to an unfathomable size as he poured Dark magic into it, turning it dark purple _'Dākumajikkuāto: Biggubanrassengan'_ (Dark Magic Art: Big Bang Rasengan)

Vlad's eyes widen as he raised one hand, halting the attack between the two of them as Garuda also pushed it down "Ah, Solstice should be back in the city with my paths by now...I hope you enjoy my little 'welcome to the neighborhood' present, Asakura Bane"

Garuda frowned for a second as he knew Vlad disappeared through a portal (Kaguya Otsutsuki style like in Naruto Shippuden) after simply letting the attack overwhelm him as another portal open right next to Garuda and he throws another punch with extra gravity

Garuda was waiting this time, in fact he was almost certain that Vlad would do this with his ability to see the future...a sort of precognition that he can control though he never usually uses it to see very far as he caught the fist without looking

_'Wantorikkuponī... Hontōni onaji torikku ni futatabi ochiru koto o hontōni kitai shite iru to ittehaikenai... Anata wa hijō ni chitekina gūru no omode wa nai yo ne?'_ (What a one-trick pony...don't tell me you really expect me to fall for that same trick again...you're not a very intelligent Ghoul Lord, are ya?) Garuda caught the fist with a monstrous grip without even looking as he grabbed the portal itself and starts ripping it open wider, dragging the Ghoul Lord out without an inch of grip lost on his fist as he spun him like a rag doll before trowing him down again, only for another portal to gobble him up again as Garuda continued peering around his environment but not moving an inch "I can do this all day, Vladamir-san"

He was serious about doing it all day too, as most Ghouls would already be dead or very close to dead if they split up their soul as much as Garuda has but he was very special as he still had full control of the parts of his soul within his paths, some of which need it either to be alive in the first place while others needed it to be subservient to Garuda...Garuda wasn't the most liked Ghoul even while growing up but it doesn't matter to him as long as he has respect and power, something some would say he has far too much of, his nine Outer Paths were only half of all his paths but the strongest due to his soul residing within them, his Inner Paths were scarcely known and not as powerful but still very close to his power, earning the name Nine Devils as he only used them when feeling particularly sadistic and could summon the anywhere, at anytime...making them all the more dangerous as their personalities were a sadistic version of themselved mixed with a seriously sadistic Garuda

* * *

**Back in the city, Solstice and the Paths of Garuda have indeed just arrived, he looked around as did the Paths, all in different directions with their Kakugan's activated**

"Find him..." Yang/Solstice orders the paths as all their yellow eyes glowed to life, they were also linked to each other and to Yang, so whatever they see, he will also see as they head closer to where Taeger lives, but their family owns two homes in the city, one on both the Binge Eater side and the non-Binge Eater side "Make your presence known, if you must..."

The Paths nod once and separate, looking everywhere in the city and converging on Taeger's house in one of the least populated areas of the city, where the plan was to search there last

* * *

**With Bane, the arrival of the Paths didn't go unnoticed...they sensed someone far stronger than the Paths but they don't know that it's Yang**

Bane couldn't move...no one in the house could as the shocked looks on their faces said it all, Garuda's Paths were in the city and there was someone else was with them, not Garuda but someone still far more powerful than they are

"Garuda..." Abel snarls through his teeth, but Bane didn't think it was Garuda whose magic was reaching out to him as he said "Father..."

All the Ghouls went out to the front of the house, with their Kakugans they saw that each of the Paths...five of them...were at key points in the city where they could see one place, their location

"Wait...where's that sixth path...and Garuda?" Dartz asked with a feeling of dread he was sure everyone was feeling

As soon as one of the Paths looked their way, Abel used Dark Magic to telekinetically push Bane, Yukio and Tsume into the house, locking them in "Shit..." As soon as one of the Paths looked right at him, he knew he couldn't let them find the Asakura family, under any circumstances

As far as Garuda was concerned, Yukio was a kill-on-sight target, as he's been a thorn in his side for years with the interference he's determined to cause Garuda despite Yukio not living here in Tokyo, Tsume was as much an obsession as Bane was as he wanted to make sure she was married, to him or anyone who were most likely just as evil as him and he wanted Bane's power, constantly testing his resolve and just how resistant he was to Garuda's brand of torture and Dark Magic in general, all of which revolve around the fact that Bane was a Hybrid, something Garuda aspired to become as nothing mattered to him but how much power he had and ruling the world, the exact opposite of Kami...he was very power hungry and the stronger an enemy tended to be than him, the crueler he was to them

The Paths were suddenly right before them as they prepared for the worst...they didn't attack however, merely wore sick grins on their faces as if they knew something no one else did...everyone's faces turned to either horror or rage as Yang/Solstice walked into their view slowly with his eyes closed as he asked "Where is my son?"

"Y-Yang..." Alphonse Taeger says before coming to the very quick conclusion that this was not Yang "No...you're not Yang, how about you give us back our friend first!"

"Your friend...is gone, only Solstice exists" Yang/Solstice grinned maniacally as he opened his yellow on black eyes, he narrowed his eyes and growled as the wind around him became destructive but he doesn't attack as he already knows Bane is here

* * *

**Inside the house, Yukio consoled Tsume who could barely contain herself at the sight of her beaten until he was near unrecognizable husband, while Bane outright refused to look out**

Bane hated...HATED...seeing his mother crying, even more that his father was responsible and against his will at that "I'm going out there..." He said but Tsume refused to let any of them go whispering "No...I won't lose both of you..."

Suddenly, a black hole opened not far from them as Boreales stumbled out, his own sword running through his chest as he fell over on his side, looking right at the two with a deathly gaze

"You again...?" Bane looked murderous as life sparked into his eyes again "This was the only way...I could control my own body again...kill me, I beg of you to release me from these curses!"

"Curses?" Bane asks as there was a curse on his body to obey any command given by Lord Vlad, but there was another much more dangerous curse that gave him distinct black fire like tattoos when active that was inficted much earlier and was designed to kill him, once his family was dead and he had nothing left to live for anyway, Vlad made sure he could be useful and more importantly, unable to take his own life while making him pay for betraying him at the same time until Vlad himself decides that he's of no further use to him, hence why a lot of people, including many Clan who go out of their way to have assassins kill him if he oversteps his boundaries, want to hurt the Ghoul Lord, even kill him especially if they're a member of the Kurosaki Clan due to how he find any and every reason to bad mouth the Clan, who don't like him anyway

The Kurosaki Clan were never killed off, but they were very scarce aside from the Clan representative, Ryuzaki 'Blazebit/Fire Eater' Kurosaki who was always busy at any given time and unconcerned with picking fights with everyone over insulting his Clan, he was prideful about it like all Kurosaki's but too busy to care despite his potty mouth where Garuda and especially Kami was concerned, going as far as wanting Kami to be removed from being a Ghoul Lord due to his past actions, especially recent ones concering his need for a bride but most women being afraid of his very cruel nature to ever love him unless he forces them to...there were many other representatives for other Clans like the Uzushio and Asakura and even some for specific persons like Garuda as well as Shin and Yakuzo from the Crypt...yes, Garuda had representation on the Council as he may be evil and had a hair-triggered temper but he didn't intentionally last out at everyone like Kami did, he was determined to be the opposite of Kami as far as how he is viewed by the public eye calling it practice for when he rules the world and enact a llan he calls the One-Mind Plan, where basically everyone on Earth becomes as subservient to him as his Paths, abolishing all individuality

"I'll be happy to take your life..." Yukio said but Bane saw things differently, now that he knew Boreales wasn't inherantly as evil as Kami or especially Vlad "No...I want your help first to help free my father...think of it as a sort of redemption"

Bane got closer to pull the sword out of Boreales' chest as their eyes were locked...Bane may want to help him, but they _don't_ trust each other and Boreales doubted they ever will, as Bane took hold of Boreales' sword, slowly pulling it out of him as the pain was on his face as he looked like he was wincing but he was so defiant, stubborn and hard headed that this happened often enough that he was ignorant to the pain most of the time as he usually had to do this and everything himself as anyone back home who decided to help him nd make Vlad aware of it would be branded a traitor by Vlad and have who knows what done to them and their loved ones, he decided from then that he wanted to be Ghoul Lord, a dream his late daughter also had and would torture Vlad day and night personally for everything he'd done to him and others, he would be the tyrannical ruler Vlad was

Boreales nodded...for the first time, his vengeance not taking the forefront "I'll do what I can to help him, but I want something from you in return, boy..." Boreales said with no emotion as Bane began cheching himself, hoping to have something of value to the Swordsman "Can I get you a new sword?"

"No...my collection is vast enough, you cannot afford my quality of weapons either and we both know it" Boreales says, already getting to his feet, he had a very strong healing factor compared to other Ghouls as Bane quickly slides his sword away from him when something catches the Assassin's eye as Bane presents a silver gem worth one hundred million dollars he found with a few old but good Darkness, Wind and Fire elemental forging gems around the house "Will this suffice?"

"For now...a pleasure doing business, now who dies first?" Boreales asks as Bane says "Take down Garuda's paths but do not kill them, especially my father"

"You do realize I am an assassin and it's in my job description to go after targets with full intent to kill, right?" Boreales said through his teeth before he sensed that the Paths weren't alive to begin with, aside from Yang, who was not a path to begin with as he magic was nothing like Garuda's "So be it...I will do as you ask, though the only one of them still actually living is that one" he points at Yang

He raises his hand as his sword returns to him, he halts as flame like markings painfully sear themselves into his entire body (like Sasuke's Curse Mark in Naruto) but struggles to make himself not fully succumb to it as he opened the door and went out to kill the Paths, the Curse Mark ate up his magic like it was crazy and has left him near death many times but he was figuring out how to make it do the opposite, force the Curse to submit to him

"You have been marked for death...drop like flies" Boreales shot past Dartz and the others before giving the Paths wounds that would otherwise kill them, if they weren't already dead but Yang/Solstice used his Wind Magic to block his attack as their eyes met

"Y-you again?!" Dartz was very angry that Boreales showed his face here

No one was angrier than Abel though as he was so pissed that his brain probably short-circuited "Oy...what the hell were you doing in my house?!" He pointed at the Swordsman as he shook, evidently mad that this stranger appeared in his house uninvited "break my property and yer payin' for it..."

Boreales ignored all of them however as he gave the paths a true taste of the truly sadistic side of him he never shows even during his usual contracts, making all but Yang/Solstice hesitate "Come...and die!" He attacks the paths head on, almost impailing Yang before taking out two paths, they showed no emotion from being partially dissected as Yang was the only one actively trying to avoid getting hit by him, proving that he was the only one of them alive

Yang tries to make a run for it, but Boreales quickly slams him and pins him to the ground as his body seemed to be so accustomed to fighting that it seemed almost like he was on autopilot slashing down any Path that got within reach, they simply put themselves back together with a metallic substance that made wires that can rejoin, bring any severed body part back together, making them be able to return even from being cut in half, the metal was recognized immediately by Boreales as he's mined it for years back home with his father and later his master who he oddly still doesn't know the identity of because he was told that he had to earn the right to know who he is, he raised him ever since his parents were murdered by Vlad when he was young but not young enough to forget...it also seemed to be extremely sensitive to Dark Magic, something that was rare in Russia despite the Ghoul Lord and Boreales himself being users of it, Boreales also used Water Magic, which was used by the majority where he's from, and Wind Magic, his personal favorite element that was learned by choice to the point where he was undefeated while using that alone

"Hedonite...reminds me of home" Boreales said, noting the metal smelled exactly like Iron tasted and while it was usually as soft as Aluminum, without being in a liquid state, it was also almost as strong as Adamantium when in its most hardened state that it was usually found in due to how cold Russia's winters are, it was highly toxic to Ghouls and Humans during any melting process, so for these Ghouls to have it in them meant they were definitely dead

Yang smiled in a manic manner as he looked at Boreales between his fingers "You...Vladamir's pet, I think it'd be fit that I kill you...seeing as Milord Garuda is currently taking that clown Vlad apart as we speak"

"Do I look like I'm here on that monster's behalf or I care what he's doing?!" Boreales snapped as his eyes looked very delirious "Killing is my profession and I love it...anyone who gets in my way from this point on...is dead!"

Boreales stabs Yang but it ends up being an afterimage as he looked across from him and disappears, catching Yang again and slamming him against a tree "No...you're not going anywhere, my friend"

"Wow...he's pretty fast" Abel says but he's still pissed that he was in his house uninvited as they worried about the other paths, one teleporting in and grabbing Bane only to have Abel take some of his frustration out on him "Hands off...I guess hidin' ya was pretty pointless, eh, kid?"

Bane became a bit shy as he nodded "but what about father...?" Bane looked at Yang as Boreales used Dark Magic to bring some rope to him to tie up Yang which he reinforced with magic to make certain he was never breaking free before dragging him and dropping him at Bane's feet

"You said you were an assassin...how are we gonna pay you?" Tsume asks as she looks Abel and Dartz who were both still glaring coldly at him

"The likes of him still ain't welcome in my house...Hell's gonna freeze over and start celebratin' Christmas before he gets my money too" Abel said as Dartz said "No..."

"So...you'll help me, Dartz?" Bane says brightly before Dartz shot him down immediately "Throw him out...of course, Pay him outta _my_ pocket...Hell...freakin'...NO...my old man would tear me a new one once he found out and he WILL find out, don't ask me how"

"I have no wish to be friends...believe me, boy...they're only a liability and an annoyance to me" Boreales tosses Yang to Alphonse's feet as he slung his sword over his shoulder with an emotionless but cold look "I'll take my leave...you can find me when you're ready...I will not charge you this once, my jobs usually take longer than this and I know where I'm not wanted"

"Stay...if you know how to free him, do it" Bane runs out and grabs Boreales' arm as he looked at Yang then to Bane "What makes you think he's worth saving anymore?"

"He's my father and I'm not giving you a choice" Bane says as Boreales seemed unwilling to do as he asks "In exchange...help me save milord, not from Kami but from himself and if we have to kill him, doesn't matter so long as he isn't disgracing both the Ghoul Lords and his family's name...I will train you to fight his magic, I will allow no one to take my vengeance from me however, you're allowed to fight him but _**not**_ kill him"

"What do you mean from himself...it's quite obvious and a well known fact that he's a worse Ghoul Lord than Kami or J'onn...if such a thing could exist" Alphonse says as Boreales nods "Yes, but his hatred and jealousy of your Ghoul Lord may be a part of that and his pride is his biggest downfall despite how he insults how prideful the Kurosaki Clan is...but telling him that anyone, _especially_ his so-called ally, Kami of the Kurosaki Clan is better than him makes him maddeningly enraged, taking it out on anyone near him, ally or otherwise...but sloppy despite the very real danger his power still poses."

"Sloppy...?" Bane says as he sensed Garuda and Vlad suddenly in the same place "If he plans on facing Garuda on his own, Garuda is one to take full advatage of such a weakness...or so he seems to me"

"Oh, he is..." Dartz confirms "I don't know how, but he only watched me fight once in his Lion's Den...the first time I personally met him, not knowing he'd even be there and after I won all ten fights, he had the nerve to commend my fighting style while pointing out how I would've lost every single fight and what mistake I would've made...he's a very nice person to those who does as they're told to the letter and follow the one and only rule in his Lion's Den...that there aren't any, so long as one Lion dies...all participants are called Lions, by the way"

"Now ya get the point...those three, Vlad, Kami and Garuda...are a dangerous combination, especially when all in one place, eh?" Boreales remarks, believing this to be the biggest group of idiots he's ever met "as if being too dangerous to be left alive isn't enough for them"

"Too dangerous to be left alive?" A man asks as Yamamoto appears on the roof, a shorter man with white hair in a ponytail and bright golden eyes, Bane noticed a huge pair of scars on his body, a large one on his forehead and only part of a larger one on his chest...and he knew that Bane noticed as he remained crouched "Hn...the same can be said for you, outsider..."

"Scar..." Yang says as the scarred Ghoul glanced at him but didn't acknowledge him "strong kid for Kami and Garuda to be ready to bite each other's throats out, eh Yang...is it yours?"

Solstice was feral by this point, but Boreales' binds weren't budging as Scar said, tilting his head to Bane "This is Garuda's doing...he's pretty obsessed with this Asakura/Uzushio Ghoul/Mutant Hybrid thingamajig he and Kami are so willing to kill for...especially where each other are concerned"

"Can I help as well, boy?" A voice says as Bane suddenly felt a large, ice cold hand reach around and touch his face from behind...it was Shin and his partner, Yakuzo who was a man at least half his height and size but always had a very strong but well controlled intent to kill...he is known to crack Ghoul skulls with his bare hands why no one allows him to grab them by the face, he was also the only one able to stop an angered or enraged Shin "Overpower his mind with enough dark magic and that should free him from Garuda's control...without killing him, but it'll sting a lot"

"Do it..." Bane nods as Shin steps forward, he did not trust Boreales and seems to have met him in the past...he saw Vlad, the Ghoul Lord he now no longer probably serves retreating from the Binge War with the body of someone he held dear and loved, his only friend as he got right in his face

_'Anata wa subete-banashi o shite iru to itte watashi o semenaide kudasai, shikashi, anata wa kare no jidai no mottomo sensō-tekina gūru no omodearu kami to taisen suru koto o keikaku shite imasu... Soshite sore wa nanika o itte imasu... Homunkurusu to anata wa sorenitaishite katsu koto ga dekiru to omoimasu ka?'_ (Don't blame me for saying you're all talk but you're planning to go against Kami, the most warrish Ghoul Lord of his time...and that's saying something...and Garuda, the closest thing we Ghouls have to a Homunculus and you think you can win against THAT?) Shin says _'Yūki to tada no oroka-sa, kodomo to no ma ni wa hosoi sen ga arimasu... Shikashi, kore wa anata o omoitodomara se tari, kibun o kae tari suru yō ni wa miemasen ka? Kore wa watashi ni kyōmi o sosorimasu... Watashi wa kōkishin no tame ni anata o tasukemasu'_ (there is a thin line between bravery and just being stupid, kid...but this doesn't seem to deter you or change your mind, does it? This intrigues me...I will help you, for curiosity's sake)

Yakuzo then grabs Yang by the face, pinning him to his spot with little effort "Stay..." He says as he grins, he may not be as excited as Shin to cause others pain but he was still looking forward to Yang being in pain "Pain is a part of life...embrace it...count the dead as lucky, their pain is over while yours is only beginning"

Yakuzo nodded to Shin as he, Alphonse, Abel, Boreales and Bane (tapping into his Dark Bane powers) placed a hand over Yang's chest without touching him or each other, Shin followed by Abel then Alphonse followed by Bane as the Dark Magic users poured magic into Yang, earning him to scream as he was kept in place with one hand from Yakuzo

Yakuzo watched Bane closely as he tries to resist the power...Dark magic is one of the most misunderstood elements as it revolves around knowledge, opposite to Light Magic revolving around power, it can make the weak minded drawn to it as well and only very strong willpower and resolve can prevent someone from being corrupted

Bane sees a vision as he seemed to now be looking down on Garuda being blitzed from every direction by Vlad but holding his own better than Bane expects with how fast he probably wants to kill him and get this over with

"Oh my God..." Bane says as Garuda's head suddenly jerked in his direction as Bane put his hands over his mouth, Garuda seems to have heard him but not see him yet, Vlad could see and hear him too though as they weren't able to interact with him, seeing as he wasn't anywhere near there physically

As sudden as it happened, Bane was jerked back to his body by Yakuzo who tells him "Don't get yourself too drawn in or you'll regret it...you can sit this out if it's too much" Bane wasn't planning to do so however as he was face to face with Shin "No...I'm fine, I saw Garuda and Vlad though...and I think they saw me too"

"Calm your mind, boy...you can't be drawn in if you have no strong emotions, you're weak if you do...and you'll lose him" Shin gets straight to the point "Are you a weakling, Bane?"

"That's a bit too blunt, ain't it?" Dartz asks as Shin says "Shut up, Dartz-san...I don't care what he thinks or how he feels about it, I won't sugar coat it or treat him like a child either...he wouldn't still even be in this city if he was just some cowardly brat and _he_ wanted to help, he wasn't forced into anything" he glares at Dartz "He has almost more magic in that frail body of his than most adult Ghouls, almost half of yours or mine though his control of that power is not very good"

Yang finally returns to normal as Yakuzo's iron clad grip frees him, Rei appears at this time as Yang squirmed over to his feet in fright as Rei looks down at him then to the others "What did I miss here, mates?"

"What the hell happened to me?" Yang says before becoming enraged and hissing through his teeth "Garuda..."

Rei grabs him by his hair and drags him to his feet "Get ahold of yaself, Hiachi..." He tries to free him but couldn't as he sees Boreales "Ye entertainin' this garbage in yer yard now, Taeger? Free him...now" he ordered

Boreales swings his sword, tearing the bindings apart like paper as Shin says, sensing his curses "You and your curses are next, swordsman..."

"What? You're joking, right?" Boreales asks as he backs away from Yakuzo who smiles "No...serious as a heart attack...the same process can free you from your curses as well"

Yakuzo throws him against a tree as he quickly gets behind the tree and grabs his torso around the trunk, lifting him off the ground easily and almost uprooting the tree as Shin begins the same thing he did with Yang...Boreales tenses and raises his sword to cut the Wardin down but he catches the blade with two fingers "Big baby..." He grinned evilly

Ryuken and Yamamoto quickly grabs both his arms as Shin sticks his sword in the ground near him, as they did something similar as he screamed as well but felt the seals fade from his body, which made him way happier than usual

Boreales refused to drop to one knee "I've been through worse..." He grabbed his sword as everyone was ready "Find Vlad and Garuda...tear them and any Path a new asshole!"

Everyone went in seperate directions from there...Alphonse, Abel and Scar going to hunt down the paths and make them pay as Yakuzo, Shin, Bane, Boreales and an exceptionally angry Yang goes to find Garuda, Yang wanting to make them suffer

Tsume, Raimundo, and Yukio as well as a few of Scar's Hunters went to find Titus, given he's not dead yet

"Do we really have to go find Garuda's long lost psycho?" Rai gripes as Tsume looked at him sternly "Yes...I still owe him for saving me"

"Heh...yeah, after he tried to slice us open with that meat cleaver he calls an axe" Raimundo says as Yukio said "then helped us ward off Garuda...not that I trust him any less than you do...he was raised by Garuda, after all to be a killer...people like him don't change overnight, even though he's no longer needed or wanted by the man he supposedly calls a father"

"Wow...even crazy people hell bent on ruling the world and killing anyone and EVERYONE who stands in their way must be really shitty parents" Raimundo says "this guy is ruining my sense of humor"

"What sense of humor?" Yukio says as Tsume stops him from punching Rai in the mouth "Garuda threaten any person or clan that threaten his rule...that includes the Kurosaki Clan and mine...maybe even the Sabaku Clan you hail from if you watch good enough"

"Oh, he has no chance of threatening the Sabaku Clan...THAT, I'm well aware of" Raimundo said jokingly, but the two could sense that this was no laughing matter to him "No one knows what specifically happened but we, my twin brother Tsujin and I, were brought here and Kami allowed us to stay...I've only met Garuda himself a handful of times but he treats us like living trophies and won't kill us or try to control us, but is vicious to ANYONE who tries to do so...he treats us as living trophies, as we're supposedly the last of a Clan that was twice the size of the Kurosaki Clan or bigger and went down to two literally overnight...our parents included who Garuda knew since childhood, way long than Kami did" Raimundo explains "We're special too...as our Clan knows Wind Magic like it was second nature and Earth Magic...though Tsujin and I both don't know any Wind Magic, which is pathetic...I know...and Tsujin can manipulate sand which earned him a really bad nickname as a kid that lives on to this day and I can manipulate metals...I guess that's not as awesome as manipulating sand though since the desert was once our home"

"There's not much metal where we're going, Raimundo-san" Yukio warns as Raimundo smiles "Oh, that's not a problem...there's bound to be Earth, unless we're going to another planet or something, I can make my own metal...don't underestimate me"

"No one is underestimating anyone, Tsujin-san...you worry about that too much" Yukio says "I would love to see this power in action though"

* * *

**Elsewhere, Titus could have seen better days after Garuda's attack on him as he was unconscious for several hours...**

That was no mere punch Garuda hit him with...was Titus' first thought as he was conscious but not enough that he was aware that he was even still alive or that someone had found him and had the nerve to be dragging his body off somewhere

Garuda has actually hit him before, but to have betrayed him to his face when he had Bane right in his clutches may have struck the wrong nerve a little too hard, he wanted to take his head off with that punch, that's just how pissed Garuda was

Surely...Titus was well aware of what he could and couldn't survive...and very few could survive a very infuriated Garuda when he decides to lash out and anyone dumb enough to be close to him, enemy or ally would end up in the crossfire

Titus saw that this person was dragging his Death Axe by a thick rope _'... Kore wa shigo no sekai... Koreha... Dō yatte shinu no?'_ (Is...this the afterlife...is this...how I die?)

The man seemed well aware about him, that no one was to touch his Death Axe...Titus began tearing up as the figure turned his head slowly to look at him...he was barely audible but clearly heard as these red eyes held no compassion whatsoever

_'Mā, sore wa anata ga sore o dō miru ka ni yotte kotonarimasu yo ne? Kudaranai shigo no sekai, anata ga watashi ni tazunetara'_ (Well, that depends on how you look at it, doesn't it? One shitty afterlife, if you ask me) the man says as his face was half hidden by a dark purple mask and he wore a hood over his daytime clothes, black with purple trim "Don't worry...you're not dead just yet, but you're lucky to have survived in the first place...looks more like someone has tamed the mighty Animal of Garuda"

Titus looked like he'd seen a Ghost, his mind was reeling as surely everyone knew this man, if not by name then by his somewhat nasty reputation...he was someone Titus secretly idolized as well and wished to become even though he wasn't very interested in being a Bounty Hunter

The enigmatic, greedy Bounty Hunter...Kakuzu

"Ka-ku..." Titus could barely say his name in his condition, this man demanded respect and was pretty much self made as he had the entire city's respect as a Binge Eater, having started the building blocks for his own Bounty Hunter's Guild from the age of six...rising to greatness when older Guildmasters with more experience than him were doing bad, he earned whatever respect he got because there were very few jobs he or the members of his Guild, Akatsuki, would take and even got the respect of Ghoul Lords, who would also hire him from time to time as his jobs may not come cheap but they were always completed partially due to those in Kakuzu's guild being terrified of failing him or worse, lose out on something that could make them money, earning his nickname of the Sin of Greed, due his greedy nature and his eye for making money over anything else

Kakuzu was planning to take him to the Crypt, but as he got near the prison, he could sense that no one was inside and waiting for him was Lord Kurosaki...the Ghoul Lord liked giving Kakuzu something that kept him on his toes and he wasn't bothered by it, what did bother him even though it was none of his business were rumors that Kami and another Ghoul Lord had began taking over parts of the city that by right weren't theirs and has been labeled traitors who were merciless to any who stood in their way, Kurosaki has also been hiding a lot recently

"Lord Kurosaki...to what do I owe the pleasure?" Kakuzu spoke calmly, he was in no way intimidated by Kami as he looked up to the taller man from a distance as Kami said "Kakuzu...hand that man over to me, now"

Kakuzu's mind seemed to be doing a double-take at that, he took orders from no one and Kami even sent his parents away from him for their own safety, as he replied in a little Italian _'Scusami?'_ (Excuse me?)

"I said, hand that thug over to me...I don't like repeating my-" Kami was about to finish when Kakuzu said "No...unless you have a goddamn good ass reason why I should do that, then go to hell...nothing personal"

Kami scowled a bit, he hasn't been seen since Rei and his sons found Tsume in the forest where Garuda left them, when J'onn appeared...he doesn't know what he was doing there but he will kill him the next time they meet

Kami has been busy however, he needed to steal something from the old Codexes of the Kurosaki Clan to find one of the Clan's most sacred swords that was only permitted for use by the main family, the Izanagi, a blade said to be forged from the same metal as the Kusanagi Clan's famed Kusanagi blade

"I won't ask again..." Kami says as Kakuzu lays Titus down and faces the Ghoul Lord "...and I won't answer again...NO still means NO, your legendary Izanagi doesn't scare the likes of me"

"You seem displeased with me, Akatsuki Guildmaster..." Kami says sarcastically as Kakuzu pulled out a simple pocket knife and pointed it at Kami "Why would you think that...you don't think I'm stupid enough to get myself involved in an argument between you and Lord Garuda? You know political affairs aren't my forté, find someone else to use to spite him"

Kami walked towards Kakuzu, his eyes as glowing blue orbs in the darkness of his black hair as he didn't move in any way besides to raise the knife defensively "Defiant little...I said hand him over, don't make a mockery of this legendary blade by defending yourself with a mere pocket knife"

Kami came down with a downward slash, but Kakuzu's knife stopped the sword whereas the blade should've been in pieces "Nonsense...if anyone's makin' mockery of anything here, it's you insulting one of your clan's sacred treasures, I thought you had an abhorrence to swords anyway and would've come at me with a dagger, which best suits your fighting style so much better than mine...it'll be madness to think I can break that sword which is pretty much priceless compared to my 50 buck pocket knife but that wasn't my intention when I can easily break the body holding it...that is expendable"

Kakuzu disappeared as Kami reached for Titus, he quickly jabs the sword over his shoulder, impailing Kakuzu without harming his hearts while narrowly dodging a stab to his neck however...Kakuzu may not have been too pleased about this, but showed no emotion

"You're good, Ghoul Lord..." Kakuzu commended his eyes widening then narrowing ever so slightly "but you technically missed, as you didn't hit my 10 hearts or any other organ, for that matter"

"Looks like Kakuzu The Avaricious is growing a real flesh and blood heart...caring for someone other than himself who he can't gain anything from" Kami mocked as Kakuzu raised his head and smacked it hard against Kami's skull, drawing blood as he let him go and he tossed the sword to his feet after removing it

"Avaricious? Me?" Kakuzu asks "Coming from the Sin of Lust himself, I think I'm flattered...it's a bad idea to target a fellow Sin for elimination, y'know...especially Greed for something he already deems his"

"Lust...why not Wrath?" Kami asks as the two clash at speeds faster that most Ghouls can see as Kakuzu was becoming rather vexxed by the look on his face _'Anata wa chōrō no ichiin, Asakura, uzu shi o, sabaku no ichizoku nado no Kurosaki ichizoku no menbādesu... Anata wa tokubetsuna hitode wa arimasenga, anata wa watashi ni sore o iu hitsuyō wa arimasen, anata wa?' _(You're a member of one of the Elder Clans, the Kurosaki Clan among the likes of the Asakura, Uzushio and Sabaku Clans and many others...you're not THAT special, but you don't need me to tell you that, do you?)

Kakuzu was smaller than Kami but he was also faster that he was...even if Kami defended himself with Amaterasu as all he wanted now was Kami to leave him alone as he goes all out for only a short time, getting past Kami's flames as soon as they are sent his way

"Eight Gates - Shatter Palm" Kakuzu snarls as Kami only notices the attack until the palm was inches from his face, sparking with silver bolts of Lightning Magic...having a heart from a user of each element - Fire, Water, Earth, Wind, Light/Lighning and Darkness - made Kakuzu an unpredictable opponent no matter what element he may face off against as the explosion of the attack can be felt and seen by the dust in the air from the whole area they were in, this attack also brings out the strongest attack of any element of his choice, except the heart controlling that element stops for a while...leaving him unable to use that element until the heart starts beating again, weakening but not killing him or stopping his assault as Kami is knocked through the forest

Kakuzu caught up to him but Kami open his eyes "Time to sharpen my fangs..." He says sadistically as he creates and explosion between the two of them, blowing off the right side of Kakuzu's mask and burning Kami's hands and right leg...nothing either of them can't recover from, Kakuzu uses the explosion as a distraction to get away though

The left half of Kami's face is hidden by smoke, his eye only shown as a blue orb "You can run, but you can't hide...let's see who gets blown apart first, my favorite game" he fades like the smoke as well

* * *

**Elsewhere, Garland had left the city and had made it miles from the city by now...alone**

Garland made it to the Coast of Japan very quickly, suddenly his expression changed from the usual blank expression anyone under Garuda's conrrol had to a more firm one, the fire in his eyes ignited like his anger

He looked around the open, empty ocean as if looking for something but he grinned...not because there was nothing here but because there was nothing here _yet_

Garland's last remaining son, Voorhees had been named Orc Chief the very second Garland was no longer among the living...he was a little more than 800 years old...once Garuda revived him to become his path and that was almost the same amount of years ago

Garland turned to leave the coast, but from in his first step...he felt an indescribable set of emotions...pure rage that he let himself die in the first place, solitude that he may end up on the end of that stick again, pride that he may die by the hand of the last surviving son, Voorhees as well as gratitude that once he does die, he'll be free to go back to the afterlife from Garuda

The strongest emotion however...was his bloodlust, he was exhilarated and could feel bits of Voorhees' bloodlust before he even reached here, despite him being in the middle of the ocean, nowhere near here yet...he plans to drown every sinle Orc on those ships...especially Voorhees, for the sheer thrill of it and not for Garuda

He wanted to lose though, so they could remove everything Garuda put inside him...despite him being easily the hardest to kill compared to Garuda's other denizens and didn't need to be pumped full of metal with his naturally hard to pierce skin and speed that made him even harder to touch even if you could penetrate his skin

Garland turned back to the sea as he made a Glyph under where he stood and prepared himself as it charged before he shot off, flying across the ocean for what seemed like hours before he lands on the main ship among thousands

Before Garland were other astonished and mostly very scared Orcs...he wasn't kind to any of his kin, as he was very easily bored and turned the Horned variety of Orcs against the Bald, hornless variety at one point, almost causing a huge war but it never happened since the two side were already breeding together

Before him was the new Chief...his son...Voorhees, who say in the back of the ship watching him, expecting him

"Son..." Garland couldn't help but grin uncontrollably

"Father..." Voorhees replied "Something's funny...care to share the joke?"

"The joke is what I'm looking at...are you going to Japan to get me?" Garland asks but only laughs when Voorhees retorts "Wasn't that obvious?"

"I'll take care of these walking corpses for you...but you're coming with me, preferably alive...untainted" Garland says as Voorhees says "No...I think you misunderstand...I'm going to Japan to invade it...not for an ideal vacation spot"

Garland appears to be shocked but this wasn't something he didn't already know "With this tiny army? Oh, you'll need at least three times the ships you have here, all filled to capacity with your...walking corpses...to stand anychance against Garuda"

"I will let no one stop me...not even you, Garland" Voorhees rose to his feet "Surrender isn't an option for me or you"

"Agreed...I'll be damned if I don't put up a fight this time before you kill me again" Garland said drawing his sword with a sadistic grin "Time to get the dried blood off this thing...I'll give it to you, should you - any of you - slay me, how 'bout that?"

Voorhees stood and drew his own dual swords as Garland's eyes widen at the swords as he said their name "Hyorin...Seissho, legendary Orcish Weapons like mine, are you trying...to scare me, Voorhees?"

Garland was impressed that the ever so impotent, but smart and powerful in his eyes Voorhees found these swords but having them in his possession wasn't scaring Garland in the slightest...it did the opposite actually, he was even more excited in fact

"MwaHA HA HA!" Garland suddenly cackled maniacally, scaring every Orc here shitless but his son "What're ya waiting for, come and die...feed my hungry blade with freshly spilt blood!" He was still giddy that he was far out of Garuda's reach here in the middle of the ocean "Anyone who thinks they'll jump ship to avoid me...be warned, the danger you'll face won't be a shark...it'll be me!"

Now Voorhees came with 100+ ships in what he considers a 'little' invasion force, each boarded by thousands of Orcs, most of which were nothing comared to The Orc Chiefs as silence fell over the waves, everyone gauging the other as Voorhees has proven he was more than able to kill Garland, as he was the one to kill him in the first place before he was dug up by Garuda who watched him die

* * *

**A/N - With Garland (in control of his mind and body fully) stumbling upon his son, of all people, with a huge army going to kill Garuda and just about everyone else, how will it end? Meanwhile, Bane and the others attempt to track down Garuda himself and Vlad before they kill each other, with Yang somewhat free from Garuda's control now and how long can Kakuzu avoid Kami getting his hands on a gravely weakened Titus before he gets killed? (Kakuzu is too smart to get killed very easily by Kami anyway)**


End file.
